Deus Ex Machina
by Chaltab
Summary: The Near Apocalypse of 09 has begun. As the gods and Titans of myth ravage the planet, Earth's heroes must muster their courage and put an end to their threat. But even the gods are just pawns in this, the master plan of the League's darkest foe.
1. Do I Dare Disturb the Universe?

**Deus Ex Machina**

**Chapter One  
**

**Do I Dare Disturb the Universe?**

_Earth-321 _

_The Future_

_The smell of blood and damp asphalt filled Clark's nostrils as he dug himself out of the rubble. He wiped blood from his forehead and eyes with his hands, and then wiped the blood from his hands onto the blue legs of his costume. _

_A powerful wind lapped at his back and his cape blew away, rolling in the current like a tumbleweed._

_He climbed up out of the crater, only to have a massive foot slam into his head, kicking him back down into the massive dent in the street. Pain shot through his body, but he barely noticed it over all the other pain. He looked up to see his foe towering over him, the Omega symbol burning in his chest._

_"You have lost, Kal-El," the enemy whispered with grim satisfaction. "There will be no deus ex machina to save you this time."_

_For once, Kal-El could not find the words to argue. For once, Superman's only response no response at all._

_The victory of evil over good was irrefutable. Superman's will would never break, never bend, but the Man of Steel's body was too damaged to go on.  
_

_Superman had lost._

**

* * *

  
**

_Earth-321_

_Two Months Earlier_

The decrepit mansion loomed on the hill above him as he strode up the dirt path. His gait was slow, each step taken with care and profundity worthy of a king—or perhaps of a man doomed to be executed. Fitting, considering that the man had an appointment with Death.

The steps up to the porch of the mansion creaked, threatening to crack under the man's weight. The doorman nodded in reverence towards his god as he passed. Boss Dark Side was a mountainous man, skin the color of ash and physique like a living block of granite. He descended into the dusty basement with the same air of solemnity that he had as he approached the house. To the right of the doorway at the bottom of the stairs, his son stood before him.

The driver's license in his pocket would have identified the son as Khale Bach, but Boss Dark Side knew that deep down, his son's true name was Kalibak. Though the oaf was rash and imprudent, he was a fierce warrior.

To the left of the door, stood the ever-conniving Desaad, a master of torture.

"It's time," Dark Side said. Desaad and Kalibak turned, following their master through the threshold and into a room where a golden disk as wide as the room lay on the floor, ancient and arcane symbols engraved into it.A dozen others stood around the circle, holding reagents in their hands—the bones of a great hero, the heart of an innocent, the soul of a wicked man, among others. Powerful symbols of the kind of magic that filled the world of mortals.

Dark Side brought the final ingredient—a vastly different sort of magic, a power far beyond anything this world could conceive of: Anti-Life. A final gift from a mortal who worshiped Evil as much as Dark Side did, though the mortal known as Lex Luthor was too full of himself to ever admit it to worshiping anything.

The Anti-Life flowed through the chalices, reaching deep into the fundamental stuff of the universe and calling out to one of its eldest caretakers. Many had tried this ritual before; all of them had failed. Light and darkness flashed in the room and rift opened; a soft sweet song that lured their victim into their trap.

The light and shadow faded, and in the middle of the circle which had before been devoid of life there now sat a small figure. She looked like a young woman, beautiful, with wild hair and chalk-white skin. Her raiment was all black, save for a small silver necklace, an ankh dangling from the chain. She lay flat on the gold plate, unconscious.

The power of Anti-Life flowed forth from the imposing form of Boss Dark Side and coalesced around the woman, forming a transparent red-tinged shield around her. Dark Side reached through the shield, pulling the ankh from the woman's necklace. As soon as the chain separated from the artifact, the chain and the dark clothing dissolved from the woman's body, leaving her naked and helpless.

Boss Dark Side dared not strike her dead, easy as it would now be. In doing so he might draw the anger of her Master, a force that even one such as he was afraid to challenge.

The ankh, being no mere trinket but a manifestation of an incredible power, drained the figure as it left her. Feeling the power leaving her, Death awoke.

"I have very long desired to lay my eyes on you," Boss Dark Side said. Beside him he heard a sharp inhale from Desaad. No doubt, his desire to torture her was overwhelming, but Dark Side would not grant him that pleasure at this moment.

The pale woman sat up, staring grimly at her captors. "I'm sorry," she whispered. "I don't believe that I know you."

"You know of me." said the ashen god of Evil. "Three years ago, gods fought a war on Earth. Good won when Evil betrayed Evil."

The woman's eyes seemed to lighten, a suddenly smile of realization flickering across her face before the grim expression returned. "Then yes, I know you," she said. "That day, I took many innocents to judgment because of your bloodlust, and millions more before then. All thanks to you."

"Speak my name."

Death blinked. "Darkseid. Lord of Apokolips."

"Soon," he said, "I shall be lord of far more. After I was destroyed by Luthor, there was a massacre in heaven. Good won, but it was a Pyrrhic victory. The hordes of New Genesis descended on Apokalips and unleashed a Holocaust worthy of my name. The Evil gods were utterly destroyed, and many of my human subjects along with them."

"Your human slaves," Death corrected.

"Yes." Dark Side leaned back and smiled. "But in his overconfident zeal for vengeance, Lex Luthor gave me my heart's desire. The Anti-Life equation. I took it and Luthor himself to my grave, and my soul fell backward through time, reincarnating in this frail flesh you see before you. Over the years, I gathered together my worshipers who survived the destruction of Apokalips in the same way I lived through Luthor's treachery."

"Why did you summon me?" Death leaned back slightly, her arms moving pointedly so that Desaad's wicked eyes would have a full view of her modest breasts. She was taunting him, knowing that Darkseid would not let his minion touch one of the Endless for the same reason that Darkseid would not destroy her.

For the first time in many years, Dark Side found himself ever-so-slightly unnerved.

"To replace you," Dark Side said at length. "You are Death to all mortals of the universe, but the souls of our dead are collected by another."

From the shadows, a tall man in black armor and a tattered cape emerged, and Dark Side handed the silver ankh in his hand to him.

"It was not given to me to collect the souls of the gods," Death said. "Nor was it given to your Black Racer to collect the souls of mortals."

"I'm changing the rules," Dark Side said. "And thus the final days of man shall begin, not with an attack that devastates millions, but with a simple change in the personnel that run this wretched universe."

The dozen reincarnated New Gods standing around the circle cast sinister grins at the imprisoned Reaper and spoke four words that echoed a devotion—a devotion that frightened Death herself.

"In Darkseid's name, AMEN!"

**

* * *

  
**

Her nightmare was the same every time. A wasteland, stretching out as far as the eye could see, darkened. Skeletal remains, the charred bones of the eighth devil, burning in the fires of a yellow star. She felt herself breathe a sigh of relief, but the relief was always false. The bones began to burn brighter, and a dark hand reached out.

Trigon the Terrible surged forth from his ashes. The nightmare never ceased. And every time his fist would reach out and close around her, crushing, suffocating, claiming.

She was his. Forever.

Raven awoke in a cold sweat as she had so many times before. Wiping the moisture from her forehead and neck, Raven reached for the blanket of her bed, only to find it no longer extant. And neither were any of the sheets.

Her senses extended out into the darkness around her, and suddenly the world came into sharp focus. She wasn't in Titans Tower anymore. Wasn't even in Jump City. Her bed sat in the middle of a street, the distinctive Gothic architecture and unmistakable skyline of Gotham City spreading out around her in all directions, lit by an impossibly large red-tinged moon. Reflexively, Raven spread out her empathic senses to gain her bearings—and was alarmed to find nobody, no emotional beacons that signaled the presence of people.

The city was empty.

She pulled herself off her sheetless bed, standing barefoot on the cold damp street, a cool night time breeze whistling between her legs and making her wish she had her cloak. Her empathic senses became sharper, and her innate ability to distinguish magic as a particular force drew her in a certain direction. Raven walked that way, winding in and out of empty streets until she found herself standing in Gotham Plaza, perhaps as it appeared fifty years ago before the massive television screens and barrage of advertisements had taken it over.

Others gathered around, men and women of all shapes and sizes—some human, some not. Some Raven recognized as powerful magicians and psychics, such as the helmeted form of Dr. Fate, the Justice League's mystical expert. Others were entirely foreign—a young Latina woman stood half a block away, staring into a deck of tarot cards but not comprehending their meaning, while nearby, a massive beast that looked like the Creature from the Black Lagoon stared at the sky expectantly.

None of them seemed to know precisely what was going on.

"Beautiful evening, isn't it?" a familiar voice called. Raven glanced over her shoulder to see the tall and broad-shouldered warlock, Jason Blood. He stroked his chin and strode toward Raven. It struck Raven as odd that Blood was dressed in his typical business attire rather than the state of sleep-induced half dress that she found herself in. Though Raven was far from the only one there in some state of undress.

"What's happening?" Raven asked Jason, taking a step closer to the only one nearby she knew personally.

"It would seem that the Dream Lord Morpheus is sending all of us some sort of massive psychic premonition," Jason said. "I fear that things will soon proceed... well, straight to hell to be frank."

Raven grimaced. That wasn't the first time she had heard that. Several times in the past months, other members of the Teen Titans had commented that they felt as though the world was careening out of control, as if headed towards a Crisis of some sort. Raven had no such premonitions—only the nightmares of her father's resurrection.

But now...

"Look!" someone far away shouted. "Up in the sky!"

Raven turned her head upward. It was not a bird, nor a plane. Nor was it Superman, though he would have been a welcome sight. High above them, two massive silhouettes hovered, suspended by nothing. One seemed to be nothing more than a massive boulder, pointed on both top and bottom. Seven smaller rocks orbited around the tiny planetoid. The other silhouette had a palace built upon it, towers and spires visible even from a distance.

Shadows erupted from these towers, figures massive in size but humanoid in shape, and tore into the cruder rock. Energy erupted from the inside of the stone.

"That's the Rock of Eternity!" someone shouted.

Raven rushed forward, her heroic instincts taking over. "Azarath, Metrion—" she began her mantra, the magic energy coursing from her demonic blood into her hands. Then, a forceful grip fell on her shoulder, pulling her back.

"It's not real, Raven," Jason Blood said. "It's nothing more than a premonition."

"How do we stop it?" She whispered.

The silhouette of the massive rock exploded, the powers attacking it having overwhelmed its defenses. Pieces shattered, scattering all across the ethereal Gotham City, tearing through buildings and pocking the ground with impact craters.

Jason Blood grimaced. "If the Dream Lord has given us a premonition of this magnitude, it can only mean one thing, Raven."

Raven glanced up at him, leaving the question unspoken.

"It means the crisis in inevitable. The proper question to ask is—will we _survive _ it?"

**

* * *

  
**

Far away from Earth, the stars stretched endlessly in every direction, galaxy after galaxy, star after star, planet after planet. Sinestro sat alone in his tiny prison cell high above the planet Oa at the center of the universe, staring out at the stars. Green beams streaked by his tiny window, the Lanterns, swooping to and fro in their arrogant might. Sinestro looked down at his bare magenta hands and longed for his ring, the yellow power ring driven by the stuff that fear was made of.

The Oans were fools. Fear, not courage, was the correct path to order. Instilling fear was the only way to maintain stability. The Green Lantern Corps would never succeed in guarding the galaxy because they failed to acknowledge the core problem. They were treating the symptom, not the disease.

A small light outside the omni-steel door of his prison cell caught Sinestro's attention. After three years in this dingy prison, little did. But he'd become accustomed to the routine, and lights in the middle of the night were not a part of it. He peaked his head out, expecting to see a Lantern, perhaps the insolent brat Kyle Rainer or the foolish oaf Guy Gardner. Perhaps the large stupid one, Killowag, or the diminutive rodent, Ch'p...

Instead, he saw a pair of small red dots, hovering in the bleak darkness of the prison. The dots blinked. Eyes. Sinestro took a step back. None of the Lanterns who guarded his cell had glowing red eyes.

The door to his prison exploded inward, metal shards nearly impaling the Korugan. Sinestro turned, instinctively attempting to summon the yellow energy of his ring, and then silently cursing when he did not find the familiar well of yellow power. He lowered his arm and let it hang at his side.

"If you wish to kill me, do it quick," Sinestro said. "I've had enough waiting to kill a man three times over in this infernal prison."

The glowing red eyes narrowed in bemusement, and figure, a massive imposing bipedal creature stepped into the room, smiling. His skin was the color of slate, and blue-tinged dark hair fell around his face. He was clad, oddly, in what seemed to be a tuxedo—a garment used on Earth, of all places, typically during weddings and funerals.

"Greetings, Sinestro of Korugar," the being said. "My name is Grayven, and I have come to free you."

Sinestro arched an eyebrow. Perhaps it was some sort of trick. "Your mode of dress is not instilling me with confidence," said Sinestro.

"You saw what I did to the door with a mere punch," Grayven said. "I shall do the same to any of the Green Lanterns who cross our path. And I offer you an opportunity to take your revenge on all of them."

Sinestro glanced back at the tiny window of his dark cell. Slowly, he nodded, and turned to follow Grayven.

**

* * *

  
**

Billy Batson ran forward, his twin sister Mary at his side, away from the confines of C.C. Binder Middle School towards the tiny ice cream shop in their home town. Without the speed of Mercury, Mary proved the faster runner, and beat him to the door of the shop by a good half second. The two teens slipped inside and quickly ordered a Chocolate Egg Cream apiece from the store's owner, Sam Beck. Soon, both of them were gobbling down the chilled delight and chatting eagerly about seventh grade English and their pre-Algebra homework.

Soon, the conversation turned to more serious—and more secretive—matters.

"I spoke with the Wizard this morning," Billy said quietly, leaving much unspoken.

Mary glanced up from her ice cream, her eyes flashing concern. "And?"

"He wanted us to meet him at the Rock of Eternity. Freddy as well. I don't know why, but I hope it's not serious."

"Sounds like it is." Mary took a bite. "The Wizard isn't very easy to rattle..."

Then two things happened at once. The door to the restroom in the back of the shop shut as Sam vanished inside to take care of business, trusting the two children not to steal anything because that was the kind of kids Billy and Mary Batson were. And lightning from the sky slammed into Billy and Mary through the window, shattering the glass coursing through the young teens' bodies.

When it was gone, Mary and Billy vanished with it.

The next thing they new, the siblings found themselves standing a stony cavern that was all too familiar. They ran forward, past the statues of the imprisoned Seven Deadly Enemies of Man and to the massive stone hall where the Wizard, Shazam, sat upon his throne. Billy's fifteen-year-old friend, Freddy Freeman, was already there, sitting on the floor in front of the bearded Shazam. Freddy's face was twisted into a grimace, and Shazam's brow was furrowed deep with worry.

"What's going on, Wizard?" Billy asked, dropping to his knees and skidding to a halt in front of the throne. Mary sat down calmly between the two boys, but Billy could sense that she was just as worried.

"The mists of magic have stirred mightily," Shazam said. "Things long kept secret have been discovered and revealed, and I fear soon it will be too late to stop the Crisis. Our enemy has already sent our allies to destroy us."

"What?" Mary arched an eyebrow. "Who sent whom to destroy us?"

"I do not yet know the identity of the mastermind, but the allies of which I spoke are already here."

Suddenly, the Rock of Eternity, suspended deep within the Etherverse between the realm of mortals and the realm of gods, shook violently, a great rumbling vibrating through the entire skyward mountain.

Shazam spoke a word of magic, and suddenly the four present were transported to the highest balcony carved into the outside of the Rock, staring down at a thrall of dozens, maybe hundreds of enormous figures crackling with power, eyes glowing red with rage not their own. Some of them, Billy knew intimately. Others, he recognized by the energies that crackled over their forms or the mighty weapons in their hands.

Ares. Zeus. Thor. Odin. Hephaestus. Baal. Raijin. Hera. And many, many others.

"BEHOLD!" Shazam bellowed. "THE GODS ARE ATTACKING!"

"SHAZAM!" cried Billy Batson, and suddenly Zeus and Mercury and Hercules were sapped of much of the strength. Six bolts of thunder struck him, and Billy transformed from the tiny thirteen year old into a massive paragon of strength and wisdom—Captain Marvel, the big red cheese. His silver cape fluttered as the air that his transformation had displaced settled back down.

Next to him, Mary also shouted, and six more bolts struck her, arcing off six distant goddesses and drawing power away from them. Mary transformed from a timid girl into the teenage bastion of strength and grace, Mary Marvel.

"CAPTAIN MARVEL!" Freddy cried, and he two was struck, his bolts arching from the same six begins that gave Billy his powers, draining them further and transforming the paraplegic Freddy into Captain Marvel Jr, a silver-and-blue incarnation of the original.

The three members of the 'Marvel Family' plunged into gathered army of gods and goddesses, and the battled commenced.

**

* * *

  
**

Grayven's powers lanced out and tore through a green barrier shield, striking the Lantern behind it and disintegrating her molecules. The ring blasted away before Sinestro could grab it. He felt helpless, relying on the blasted oaf in the tuxedo to do all the killing. He needed a weapon, anything to kill with. Preferably something yellow, something to prevent the younger, weaker Lanterns from defending themselves.

"Ever heard of a planet known as Qward?" asked Grayven blasting away several more Green Lanterns with beams that erupted from his eyes.

"Of course," Sinestro said. "It's in the Anti-Matter universe. I was exiled there after the traitors on Oa deemed me unworthy to be a Lantern."

"That's where we're going," Grayven said. A huge flash and the unmistakable BOOM of a Boom Tube, the space-distorting method that New Gods used to travel across vast distances, appeared in front of them. Graven walked into the Tube, and as more Green Lanterns poured into the room, Sinestro followed, willing to take his chances on Qward. Even death would be preferable to returning to his cell.

On the other end of the tube, The acrid smell of industry and the barren, rocky surface of Qward greeted Sinestro and Grayven. Sinestro watched as the man, who he was beginning to suspect was one of the mysterious New Gods, slowly walked towards a massive digging construct. All around them, beings worked with laser drills, and others scrambled about maintaining the digging machinery.

"What is this?" Sinestro asked, stepping forward. "Who are these people?"

"All this is my father's gift to you," Grayven said. "These people are men and women from all over the universe who follow you, Sinestro. Your influence extends further than you know. The example of order that you made of Korugar has spread as a legend throughout the galaxy."

Sinestro frowned. "What are they digging for?"

"There was once a single universe, in which a battle erupted. All the time lines began running together, and the fabric of reality was breaking down. Then a being of incredible power traveled to the dawn of time and reset the universe, creating anew the Multiverse. The armor which he wore was sheared from his body by the explosion of the new Big Bang, but the remnants of it were buried deep within Qward. The armor will grant you an almost limitless amount of power, though only a tiny fraction of the power it's original wearer possessed."

Sinestro's heart leapt, but quickly returned to normal. Dare he believe this stranger. Dare he hope for such a gift, no strings attached? There must be a catch, there must be some obligation he would be expected to fulfill. Sinestro felt the hint of a smile that had formed onto his face twist into a grimace. He stroked the beard he had grown in his three years in prison.

"Who," he asked, "is your father?"

Grayven smiled, another Boom Tube opening behind him. "My father is someone you're very familiar with," he said, stepping backwards into the Tube. "He tried to kill you once, in fact."

As the Tube closed, a single word came through.  
_  
Darkseid._

Then Grayven was gone, leaving Sinestro stranded on Qward, surrounded by worshipers he never knew he had, but feeling utterly alone, and despising the New God for it.

**

* * *

  
**

Captain Marvel flew forward, his silver cape fluttering in wind of the Etherverse and fighting off attacks from Ra, Egyptian god of the sun, and Shiva, Hindu god of destruction. He grabbed the end of Mjolnir, the mighty hammer of Thor, and flung it around, bopping the many-armed Shiva with the sturdy handle. Captain Marvel tried to heave the massive hammer back at its owner, but the incredible weight pulled him down through the Etherverse. Several gods and goddesses, eyes burning, blasted him with their own unique powers and elements as Marvel fell.

He reached down with all his strength and was able to heft Mjolnir up above his head for a brief second, even as a red demonic entity few towards him on a cloud that crackled with electricity.

"Behold, I am Raijin!" he shouted in Japanese. "Devourer of navels, god of thunder and lightning!"

Captain Marvel barely heard the mad god's tirade, his muscles starting to burn with the heft of the hammer of Thor; he flung it straight down, letting go, giving up trying to wield a weapon that was not his to wield. The head of Mjolnir slammed into Raijin's face, smashing the skull of the hungry thunder god and sending his body careening into the storm of magical energy that rested at the bottom of the Etherverse.

"Whoops!" Captain Marvel said, raising his hands in a defensive apology. "Sorry, sir!" he shouted.

As he wasn't looking, Frigg and mighty Freyja on her cat-drawn chariot charged the hero, slamming into his back. As Freyja's cat tried to maul him, Captain Marvel fought them off, punching and kicking the beasts. Mary swooped down, sliver and white costume streaking through his field of vision, slamming into Freyja and knocking her from her chariot.

Captain Marvel turned, his fist swinging wildly and decking Hera in the face, even as he elbowed Frigg in the stomach and broke free from the wild cats. He flew upward, overwhelmed by the gods and goddesses. He looked up and saw the Rock of Eternity, and that Freddy was doing his best to hold more and more of the gods off of it, as well as Shazam, casting mighty spells to keep the gods away.

But he also saw that the two were being overwhelmed, and that the Rock was beginning to fail. Tyr and Ares, gods of war both, opened up the arsenals of their mighty legions of dead worshipers on the Rock, and cracks formed all across its surface. Shazam blasted them away, but the arrows of Ares' archers slammed into his throne atop the Rock, and even from so far away, Captain Marvel could see blood leak from Shazam's frail body.

He almost cried the wizard's name, restraining himself at the last second, even as he flew up and slammed into Ares, and snapping the war god's neck. It would not be a fatal injury, not to one such as Ares, but it would put him out of the fight for the time being.

He turned and smashed Tyr with both fists—and knew that neither shot would have been possible if Shazam hadn't blasted them, disorienting the gods with his obscenely powerful magics. Mary joined him near the throne atop the Rock, bleeding from cat scratches on her forehead and arms. Captain Marvel himself was probably covered in similar wounds, but had been too distracted to notice.

Shazam called out telepathically, urging the three of the "Marvel Family" to come closer.

"What is it?" Mary asked, wiping a trickle of blood from her forehead.

"This is not a fight we can win," Shazam said. "Already your brother has shed blood in this battle."

Billy grimaced, partially due to remembering the crushed skull of Raijin and wishing he could forget it, and partially because the Wisdom of Solomon had been trying to get his attention and tell him it was a hopeless fight for the past ten minutes. Billy had been blocking him out.

Shazam waved his hands and spoke some magic words, and suddenly, Billy, Freddy, and Mary were encased in magic bubbles and hurled backwards away from the Rock. The gods seemed to ignore them, instead attacking Shazam. Powerful magics washed over the Rock of Eternity, and then it vanished in a brilliant flash.

A split second later, Billy found himself sitting in the dining area of the little ice cream shop, his sister beside him, both back to their normal selves sitting in front of their half-eaten Chocolate Egg Creams. They looked at each other, neither of them asking the obvious questions.

The bell attached to the door gave a short jingle, and Sam stepped back in, looking at the Batson siblings oddly. "Weren't you just not here?" he asked, more talking to himself than to them. He shrugged. "You kids better get home. Something's not right, look at the sky. I don't like this one bit."

Billy and Mary walked outside and stared up into the blood red sky.

It was 4:00 PM.

**

* * *

  
**

Over Gotham City, a massive explosion erupted in the middle of the broad daylight sky; there was no warning as there had been nothing there to explode. The windows of Wayne Tower shattered inward, as did many other windows for miles around. Shards of super-hot rock scattered through the city, tearing through buildings, cars, and flesh, and from the center of the explosion, a deep crimson radiated outward, staining the blue sky, as if the atmosphere itself was bleeding.

The body of Shaman, ancient and lifeless, drained of the magic energy that kept him vital for centuries, fell from the sky.

By the time it reached the streets of Gotham, nothing remained but dust.

**

* * *

  
**

The shards of ancient armor, buried since the dawn of time, were cool to the touch like any metal should be, but as soon as he placed his hand on them, Sinestro felt their energy rush through him. The being who had worn this armor must have been truly godlike. In an instant, things that Sinestro had never know before became instantly clear to him.

He understood secrets few could appreciate.

Fear was the key. And surrounded by followers who understood why fear was the true path to order, a grim and glorious idea was birthed in Sinestro's mind. The shards of armor rose into the air, swirling, their energy flowing out. Energy coalesced and a rift opened, a rift to the atmosphere above Earth. It would have been so easy for Sinestro to reach out and destroy the planet of his hated enemy John Stewart right there, with the power he had now.

But Sinestro had far greater plans than that. Anyone would, knowing now what they knew.

Energy coalesced into the form of a great mantis, glowing yellow and full of spite and fear. It was a being known as Parallax that Sinestro intended to subdue, and with the power of the ancient armor, he did so, calling the malignant entity back together from where it had been shattered. The shards swirled together, becoming bonds that held Parallax. Light radiated off them—yellow light—and Sinestro hurled the vast ball of power into a mountainside. Matter and energy flashed and transmuted in an instant, and soon a massive power battery rivaling the one on Oa grew from the rocky Qwardian terrain.

A yellow power battery.

Sinestro reached his hand out, summoning a tiny shard of the armor's metal. It wrapped around his finger and formed a ring. Then he spoke: "_In blackest day, in brightest night, beware your fears made into light. Let those who try to stop what's right, burn like my power—"_

_  
_Power rings all flew out of the Power Battery and onto the fingers of Sinestro's followers. And in unison, they finished the oath for him.

_"SINESTRO'S MIGHT!"_

**

* * *

**Clark Kent stepped out of the Daily Planet building into the sunny spring day in Metropolis, glad to feel the energizing sun on his skin. It was brisk, but Clark didn't notice like everyone else. He was a bit different than everyone else.

So when a massive mechanical monstrosity appeared in the sky, Clark heard it first, saw it first, and reacted first. Civilians all around stared up at the metallic monster, shoulders as broad as Centennial Park and hands over which flames danced gracefully. The titanic beast seemed to roar, as tiny blue figures began pouring out of its abdomen.

While the civilians began to panic and flee, Clark Kent went the other way, slipping into a back alley and pulling off his business suit to reveal the attire of his most important business underneath.

Superman emerged from the alley, arcing skyward to meet the attacker.

Above him, the sky began to turn red as blood.


	2. Look On My Works, Ye Mighty

**Chapter Two  
Look On My Works, Ye Mighty**

_Metropolis_

**  
**"This is jarringly similar to the thousand other alien invasions we've faced," thought the Man of Steel. "But the implications of that can wait until later."

He arced skyward, his fists clenched. The enormous mechanical monstrosity in the sky above Metropolis was releasing hundreds of small blue figures from compartments on its belly, and Superman studied them with telescopic vision well before he arrived. They were about the size of a human, maybe five and a half feet tall, and were covered in a shimmering blue energy. Their only distinguishing feature was a single red circle in the middle of their chests.

Superman swooped towards the nearest one, grabbing it by the shoulders. The energy was warm to his hands, but not so hot that he was forced to let go. And since nothing around him was melting from the combined presence of the creatures, the blue energy clearly wasn't hot enough to burn Kryptonian hands by itself. And given that it wasn't red solar energy, only one option remained: magic.

"Who are you? What do you want?" Superman demanded

The blue creature's head flashed. Superman used his X-Ray vision to try and see what was going on underneath the energy, but found his X-Rays reflected back into his own eyes, blinding him with a flash that would have been invisible to humans.

The creature spoke. "Self Designation – OMAC Unit. Offensive Modular Arcane Combat Unit." Something whirred inside its head. Clark realized that the creatures were machines. "Target acquired: Subject Alpha—Kal-El. Codename: Superman. **Terminate**."

The red dot on the OMAC Unit's chest erupted with energy and sent Superman sprawling backwards. He slammed into a Soder billboard, then hovered in front of it, trying to catch his breath. He felt drained. That beam, he thought, must have been the frequency of red sunlight. These things were dangerously well-versed in his weaknesses.

The OMAC flew closer, and Clark blasted it in the head with his heat vision. The attack bounced off the blue energy shielding, and another beam lanced out of the OMAC's chest. Clark dodged it, returning fire, this time aiming at a specific target—the red circle where the laser blast originated.

The beams tore into the OMAC, and a small explosion erupted from the inside. The shielding failed, vanishing and revealing a thin metallic frame, a skeleton of sorts, on the inside of the robot.

Clark would have examined it, but as soon as his attention left the robot trying to kill him, the sounds of OMACs terrorizing the city reached his ears. He swooped down into the chaos, taking one OMAC down as it tried to destroy a large SUV, then blasting another one in the chest as it hefted a truck towards a decaying apartment building. The truck fell short of the target, crushing the robot. A young man tumbled out, shaken up. Clark looked at his bones and saw that none were broken, a small blessing.

Likely the only one he'd receive today.

"Take cover!" he shouted, turning his attention to other OMACs. "They're all over the city."

What Superman did not mention was the fact that all over Metropolis, he could hear news reports on radios and televisions.

Metropolis was not the only city being attacked.

**

* * *

**_Gotham City_

The Batwing soared through the red skies above the sprawling megalopolis, the Dark Knight at the helm. In the distant sky over neighboring Bludhaven, a second metal behemoth hovered over the buildings, unleashing a swarm of the blue machines. Many of them arced directly towards Gotham's industrial districts, attacking the pollution-spewing factories; others had begun blasting red energy beams from their chests into Wayne Tower.

Batman grimaced. Bruce Wayne had a lot of good employees in danger..

The Batwing swooped close to Wayne Tower, arcing around the building and unleashing a burst of machine gun fire from the Batwing's main guns. When he'd seen the reports of the attacks on television (which he had been watching thanks to the massive explosion over Gotham minutes earlier) he had recognized the beings the beings design: they were either made of or surrounded by energy. The rounds he was using had been specially designed by some of the League's finest scientists to pierce energy shielding.

The phasic rounds, as they were called, tore through the small machines easily, and Batman swerved, dodging through as many lasers as possible. But even the Batwing, advanced as it was, soon proved too cumbersome to pilot through the flurry of energy beams. A blast struck the left wing and rocked the plane hard to port. Batman put the plane into a nose-dive, launching explosive mines upward from the tail end. More machines shattered under the assault, but more beams struck the Batwing. It rocked violently, and Batman's head slammed into the roof of the plane. Batman fired his rear machine guns, but the return volley from the machines was fiercer still.

Batman was about to eject and cut his losses (he had already commissioned the construction of a better Batwing a few days ago) when a blast of red flaming energy slammed through several nearby creatures, the brightness causing the cockpit glass to dim. Batman glanced in the direction from which it originated to see the demon Etrigan standing on the roof of Wayne Tower, throwing his demonic flames at the robots.

"Etrigan," Batman radioed over the general frequency JLU channel. "Thanks for the assist. I need to take care of the bogeys at the industrial parks."

The gravely voice of Etrigan replied. "Understood, Dark Knight. Take care, take flight."

Batman decided not to comment on the poor rhyme, instead opening the Batwing's throttle and heading towards his targets. He fired at more robots as he arrived, blasting them out of the sky with the phasic rounds and swooping close to the mass that had gathered around the factories. Smokestacks that had once belched smoke into the sky now stood as melted lumps on top of their respective buildings, sealed shut by the laser beams. Smoke was pouring out of the buildings' windows and doors, driving the factory workers out into the open.

Twin missiles designed by Mr. Terrific and Ray Palmer lanced out of the Batwing and into the cluster of robots, absorbing their energy 'skin' and then detonating, shattering the fragile metal endoskeletons underneath.

The radio crackled with static.

"Batman, it's Nightwing," came the voice of Dick Grayson.

"Situation?" Batman asked, continuing to blast more robots out of the sky.

"As best I can tell, they're called OMACs and their primary purpose is to engage Metahumans in combat. I've got half the Outsiders helping out in Bludhaven and the rest scattered across the country as needed. This seems to be a global attack."

"We can't spread ourselves too thin," Batman said. "That's what the League is for. Concentrate on Bludhaven. I'm handling Gotham."

"Batgirl and Flamebird are on the ground in Gotham. Apparently enough blunt force trauma can break the machine skeletons and disable these things. Nobody can raise Spoiler. Batgirl said she was babysitting today."

"I need to concentrate, Nightwing. Batman out." He switched the radio off.

Batman hated to kill the conversation in such a manner, but he needed to concentrate. And Nightwing knew he preferred for Spoiler to stay out of harm's way. He would have been happy if Flamebird hadn't gotten herself involved either. Cassandra was the only one with the skills to handle this crisis, in Batman's estimation.

And even then, it would likely end in all their deaths.

Batman realized that the OMACs, as Nightwing had called them, were a distraction from the true purposes of the metal behemoths. But without any points of reference, Batman could only guess at what that purpose was. All his theories were grim—but just speculation.

And they couldn't abandon the civilians to be slaughtered by the OMACs.

These thoughts tore through Batman's mind even as the Batwing tore through another group of the killing machines.

**

* * *

**

_Boston  
_

Diana's heart had thumped within her chest when she saw the incredible hovering behemoth in the sky above her adopted hometown of Boston. She had never seen it before, but she instantly knew what it was, just as she had known what had appeared over Gotham and Metropolis.

Moreover, she knew _who_ it was: Hyperion the Titan. father of the Dawn and of Helios, the sun. The Titan shone brightly, light pouring off his body and raining down on the city. It was tangible luminescence, solid particles that glowed with energy that illuminated without poisoning. And more lights—blue lights—flew out from Hyperion's belly. As the lights got larger, they became the clearly defined shape of humanoid androids—OMACs.

The OMAC creatures that had been attacking many of the world's greatest cities now surrounded Boston. Cars and other vehicles were their first targets, but it soon became clear to Diana, Themysciran ambassador to the United States, that _she_ was their most important target.

That had been a few minutes ago. Now, Diana was surrounded. In a whirlwind, she transformed into her battle armor, assuming the mantle of Wonder Woman once again. She flew towards the OMACs, reflecting a flurry of energy beams with her god-forged bracelets and then retaliating, throwing her Amazon strength into a relentless blunt force assault against the energy shields, the blue magic forcefields around the OMACs.

Enough bludgeoning shattered the metal skeletons within the creatures and caused them to collapse and cease to operate.

Lasers slammed into Diana's side, and she cried out in pain, turning the direction the attack had come from and seeing another platoon of the hovering entities. She flew backwards, scooping up a manhole cover from a city street and hurling it at the OMACs. The metal disc bounced from robot to robot, warping with each impact. The OMACs kept coming.

Diana grimaced. She could beat them, damage them beyond functioning, but that took a lot of force, a lot of effort. And she wasn't Superman. Diana was mighty as Hercules, but she lacked the stamina of Atlas. Her true fighting strength lay in her skill in all forms of martial arts. She needed weapons, preferably weapons of the magic variety. The Amazonian embassy would have some, so Wonder Woman slowly wound through the streets, keeping the OMACs' attention on her and off civilians until she could storm inside and arm herself.

Even then, chaos was the order of the day.

**

* * *

**_El Paso, Texas_

More blue things! The Blue Beetle felt almost guilty as he tore through another platoon, betraying his own color like that. But these blue things were bad news, torching anything man-made and retaliating against anyone who tried to stop them.

Jaime Reyes hadn't been the Blue Beetle for long, but he'd already dealt with some crazy threats. Blue energy-covered robots were tame compared to what he'd gotten used to fighting the alien Reach, a race of interstellar real-estate brokers who used their advanced technology to depopulate planets, then sell them to the highest bidder.

"What's an O-MACK?" Jaime exclaimed, responding to the inner voice of the Scarab, the alien device bonded to his back. It was the Reach who had created the Scarab. Jaime was supposed to be on the Reach's side, but the Scarab had decided it liked him better than its old masters.

More of the OMACs started surrounding him, and the Scarab rattled of a list of options ranging in intensity from "Death Ray" to "Thermonuclear Explosion"....

Jaime opted for the former, the mechanical armor that encased his body morphing at the arms to create two energy cannons. Deadly violet beams lanced out of the canons and tore into the oscillating energy of the OMACS. The Scarab began counting off the kills as Jaime destroyed each one: it kind of reminded him of Legolas and Gimli's competition in the_ Lord of the Rings_, to see who could kill the most Orcs.

The OMACs surrounding him went down, followed by others. Jaime was surprised by how effective his weapon was.

"What's that energy around them, anyway?" Jaime asked the Scarab. "It's not like radioactive, is it?"

He grimaced at the Scarab's reply.

"Magic? I _hate_ magic."

So did the Scarab.

**

* * *

**_Earth Orbit_

John Stewart had been running towards the JLU Watchtower teleporter. Now, not so much: his senses were being overwhelmed by pure green. He felt himself grow paralyzed, his vision blurring. His mind buzzed with chatter, and Ganthet, one of the Guardians of the Universe, appeared before him. Not the real Ganthet, of course, but a small green-hued facsimile, a hologram beamed directly into his senses by the power of his ring.

"Lantern 3841.1, John Stewart," Ganthet said, his voice dripping with urgency. "You are needed immediately on Oa. This is an order, non-negotiable. Report immediately."

John wasn't going to argue with a worried Guardian. The Guardians _never_ worried. Most of them were pushing a million years of age; there was little they hadn't seen.

The real world slipped back into John's senses, and he saw Zatanna and Red Tornado standing in front of him, in the process of calling his name.

"Aren't you coming, John?" Zatanna raised a white-gloved hand and beckoned him with it.

"He seems to be in some sort of trance," remarked Tornado, the android affectionately dubbed "Reddy" by those who knew him. He was in some ways more human than some of the flesh and blood members of the League. (And when people commented to that effect, they were without exception referring to Batman, and not actual non-humans like Superman and the Martian Manhunter.)

John shook his head, suddenly acutely aware of half the Justice League staring at him. "I've just been called back to Oa. Something urgent."

"We need you on Earth," Green Arrow said, stepping up beside him. "The whole world's going to hell down there!"

"I'll be back as soon as I can," John said. "I promise. But the Guardians wouldn't have called me back to Oa if it wasn't something big."

Green Arrow stroked his blond beard and glanced at Zatanna and Red Tornado.

"All right," Zatanna said after a moment. "But hurry back. We've not seen something like this since—"

John nodded. Nothing of this magnitude since Darkseid had invaded Earth three years ago after Lex Luthor resurrected him in deep space.

John powered up his ring's life-support field and flew towards the Watchtower's airlock. He had a long flight ahead of him.

**

* * *

**The last of the OMAC units over El Paso fell as Jaime and the Scarab blasted the machine's innards into atoms. Jaime had heard that another one of the big mechanical things that were attacking the major cities had been seen over the Gulf Coast, attacking oil rigs, but he also heard that Aquaman and a platoon of Atlanteans were responding to that threat. For now, El Paso was safe, and Jaime was exhausted.

Jaime turned away from the remains of the OMACs and towards the devastated battle zone, having the Scarab scan the area for any survivors.

"Prioritize the injured," Jaime told it.

The Scarab didn't understand why. The Reach had taught him to leave the injured to die and rescue those who were better fit for life.

"Humans don't operate that way," Jaime insisted. "And as long as you're on my spine, you're doing things the human way."

The Scarab chirped an affirmative. It was remarkably easy to get along with when it complied with Jaime's requests.

There weren't many survivors, but there were very few dead as well. Most of the people had wisely cleared out of the area as soon as Blue Beetle had arrived, and for that Jaime was thankful. Soon he dragged his exhausted body to the Reyes home—his home—and crashed on the couch. He could hear his little sister Milagro in the back room, watching some old Power Puff Girl DVDs that Brenda had given her.

Jaime turned on the TV and put it on the news; reports of chaos all over the country streamed in on every station; not only were all of America's major cities under attack, so were other cities around the world. Tokyo had a huge female-looking robot that glowed orange like a sunrise blasting skyscrapers; down south in Mexico City, another monstrosity that shone like some sort of mechanical sun god was dumping OMACs into the streets.

"Jaime!"

The young hero glanced over his shoulder to see Brenda and Paco, his two best friends, running in through the front door of his house. He hadn't even heard it open, he was so focused on the news reports.

"We saw you on the local station," Brenda said. "Why aren't you helping out in Mexico City or something? They only have like two superheroes down there."

Jaime winced. "I'm exhausted guys."

Paco crossed his broad arms over his massive torso. "_Hombre!_ Superheroes don't get exhausted. You have to go do something, you're one of the only heroes Texas has."

Anxiety welled up in Jaime's gut. On one hand, he knew Paco was right, but on the other hand, he felt that if he tried to do anything else he'd be sloppy. And that could get him and anyone he was trying to save killed. Between the Reach and La Dama—and now the OMACS—he'd not slept in nearly 24 hours and needed to do so badly.

Jaime buried his hands in his dark hair and felt himself sweating. The whole world was going to hell and he was too tired to do anything but watch. He was still thoroughly in the grip of his self-pity when a knock came at the door. He ignored it completely.

After a few knocks, Brenda answered it.

"Hello," came a soft female voice. "I'm here to sell fishes!"

"Um..." Brenda called to Jaime. "Hey, I think this is your territory."

Jaime turned and looked at the visitor, and then found himself goggling. He couldn't make her out completely, as though there was a disconnect between her and the physical world. Approximately speaking, she was a short young woman with pale white skin, but her clothing writhed and shifted. Half her hair was red and cut close to her scalp, but the other half was a spiky rainbow of colors. Her eyes were differently hued, and reality seemed to distort around her as though the gravity of her soul could pull the human mind into its orbit and hold it there.

Jaime struggled to regain his senses and felt the Scarab inside him attempting to do the same.

"Who are you?" he finally managed.

"Me? Oh, I'm just visitor who has come to stay, a passerby on the road that leads nowhere. But you can call me Delirium. I'm not really here to sell you fishes, though. That's the next house over."

Jaime blinked. "Then why did you come here?"

"My sister was kidnapped, and since I'd probably get confused if I went looking for her, I thought I'd come here and tell you. My brother, Destiny, told me you'd be able to get her. I agree with him, because you smell nice. Both of you!"

She pointed to all three of them, a sudden third arm growing to point to Brenda.

"Your sister?" Paco scratched the stubble on his chin. "What are you, some sort of anthropomorphic personification of insanity? How does that have a sister?"

Jaime assumed that Paco was just guessing.

"Yup!" Delirium said cheerfully. "And I'm the only one who truly understands me. Well, me and the fishes, but they're busy at the bowling alley. They don't like to lose."

Jaime did not like where this was going. "If you're Delirium and your brother is Destiny, then who is your sister."

Delirium smiled broadly. "Here's her card!"

She extended a hand and produced a small card. Jaime took it and realized that it wasn't a business card, but a Tarot card; it depicted a skeleton sitting on a horse, and a banner at the bottom had writing on it:

_Death._

**

* * *

**Smog poured from the bowels of Bludhaven's industry, even as OMACs laid waste to the machines that rolled through its streets and the civilians scurried about. Anyone who tried to stop the OMACs was treated as a hostile and exterminated—the Master's plans were not to be interfered with.

The great behemoth knew his name was Menoetius, and he knew his Master's face. He knew his Master's dark eyes, always present in the back of his mind. Always driving him. He knew a word that described him, but he couldn't remember what it meant. The word was _Titan. _Menoetius felt the Master's eyes in his mind, felt pressure, felt heat. He felt his Master's hatred for the people who scurried about, destroying the beauty of mother Gaea's Earth.

And Menoetius felt compelled to reach out with his massive armored arm as a stream of energy coursed through his obsidian hand. A spear formed in it, and a shield appeared in his left hand, shimmering with the light of Helios, the Sun. The spear lanced out and gouged a deep hole in the ground of the wicked city.

Bludhaven was to be destroyed. The Master commanded it. Menoetius felt power course through his veins and slowly landed, his leg buckling thanks to a crippling from ages ago. Ruined strength. It meant something to him. The name Zeus. It meant hatred. But those things were distractions now. Long forgotten memories that no longer mattered.

Menoetius surrendered to the control of the Master, landing atop a factory that poured smog into the air, and smashing a bridge to concrete shards with his great spear. Humans and their automated chariots plummeted into the river below, even as others died beneath his massive feet. Fire danced from his eyes and burned more of Bludhaven's industry to the ground.

Soon, the city would be gone, wiped from the face of the Earth. A memory. Like the ones that Menoetius could no longer recall. The ones that Master had taken away.

**

* * *

**

High atop a Bludhaven skyscraper, Nightwing watched as the metal giant tore into the city. For once, he had no witty remarks to make.

**

* * *

**John Stewart emerged from Hyperspace and swooped down towards Oa. From a distance, his ring informed him of a battle going on above the planet's sky. Green light poured from the atmosphere, into a barrier of yellow.

A barrier of yellow light. Oa was under attack—by a yellow corps?

"Glad you could make it!" called a voice in John's mind. Lantern rings allowed a sort of digital telepathy. The voice was that of fellow Lantern Killowag, a friend of Stewart and one of the most able Green Lanterns. "Let's show these Sinestro Poozers what the Green Lantern Corps is made of, Stewart!"

"Sinestro?" John sped up, approaching the speed of light as he arced around the gravity well of Oa to the site of the battle.

"He escaped from his science cell last night," Killowag said. "We sent some guys out looking for him, but this time he came to us."

"Yeah, with an army!" John arrived at the battle site, and saw a huge six-armed monster with tentacles for legs about to engulf Killowag. He reached out and stabbed the yellow-energy wielder in the chest with a beam from his ring. "Where did he get this kind of power?"

Killowag shrugged. "Hell if I know! The Guardians are down there debating if we should use lethal force at this point. But it takes a fraggin' committee to change anything in the Book of Oa."

Just then, a massive fist of yellow energy slammed into Killowag and blasted him back into the gravity well of Oa. Stewart turned to see an all-too-familiar magenta-skinned figure floating towards him, this time in a yellow and black armor with a new insignia on the chest.

"Ah, Stewart," Sinestro said with false pleasantry. "I was hoping to find you here. We already captured your human friend Rainer and sent him back to Qward. I'm sure my followers are treating him well."

Stewart felt his gut twist into a knot and his eyes narrow with anger.

"Where is he, Sinestro!?" Stewart demanded, a green aura flaring to life around him and a battle ax construct forming in his hand. "Where did you get this kind of power?"

"A gift," Sinestro said. "From our old mutual enemy, Darkseid. But that really doesn't matter." Sinestro formed his own weapon, a huge burning yellow falchion that would have been far to heavy for a Korugan like Sinestro, had it possessed any actual mass. "Not even Darkseid can oppose me at this point."

The sword slashed out, and Earth's greatest Green Lantern joined the war against the Sinestro Corps.

**

* * *

**The new face of Death smiled. Souls poured from the ruins of Bludhaven into his own black heart, his skis arcing over the planet, invisible to all but a select through. The Black Racer felt the power of thousands of dead pouring into his armor—soon the number would be millions. Soon millions of souls would be utterly in the service of Lord Darkseid.

His lord would be pleased.


	3. On The Frontlines

**Deus Ex Machina**

**Chapter Three**

**On The Frontlines**

**

* * *

**_Oa_

_The Center of the Universe_

"Lethal force is authorized," intoned the stern, level voice of one of the female Guardians of the Universe "I repeat, lethal force is authorized."

The voice echoed throughout the corridors of the Green Lantern concourse on Oa, speakers arranged so that every Lantern still on the planet heard it. The message also came through the rings of Lanterns already in the field. Miles above the surface, a red-skinned figure clad in green and black looked at the new Lanterns in her charge

"Great gods! You hear that?" shouted Katma Tui. She was a fierce Korugan, who had vehemently imposed Sinestro's totalitarian ideology as a young woman. Once again she found herself on the opposite side of a war against the would-be despot. "They've altered the rules. What's the universe coming to?"

One of the Lantern recruits spoke up with an old adage about times and measures being desperate. Katma slowly nodded, green fire flaring around the ring on her right hand. She turned to the thinning atmosphere above and flew upwards, telepathically urging her men to follow.

"For Oa!" one of them shouted.

"For Oa!" the others echoed. Katma Tui could not help but smirk, proud of her hand in training the young Lanterns. Proud of the courage that made the Green Lanterns what they were.

The atmosphere ended and the Lanterns exploded into empty space, and into the middle of a chaotic brawl, Sinestro Corps members and other Lanterns blasting each other. Yellow and Green light streaked back and forth across Katma's field of vision, and she swallowed her innate sense of self-preservation and lashed out at the nearest Sinestro Corp member. The others behind her attacked as well, making good use of the fact that most of Sinestro's corps had little training.

The creature in front of her, a green scaly monster with sharp teeth and three eyes, roared something unintelligible and lashed out with yellow power. Katma blocked it with her own ring-shield, bending her elbow to parry the attack. The alien was either unintelligent or incredibly unskilled in the use of his ring, because he let the inertia of the parry carry him forward slightly instead of using the ring's power to steady himself.

Katma bent her elbow and stabbed with a blade that formed from its point, piercing deep into the alien's gut. She grimaced, a strange sense of revulsion combined with satisfaction welling up in her stomach. The alien's three eyes went dull, even as green blood leaked from the wound and froze in the vacuum of space.

Katma's head seemed to spin slightly, and she suddenly knew what it felt like to use the power of the ring to kill someone. She turned her attention to a fierce battle between John Stewart and Sinestro, several hundred meters away. She was not the first Korugan to possess such knowledge, she thought grimly.

But she would do her best to make sure she was the last.

**

* * *

**Wonder Woman's ax came down onto an OMAC, the god-forged metals slicing through the magic shielding around the machines and severing the wires that made up their innards. Hyperion had stopped spewing OMACs into the air and now loomed above Boston as if waiting for something.

Diana hovered above the battle field, waiting for more OMACs to come to her before deftly delivering a series of death blows. _Great Hera_, she thought. _What has possessed the Titans to unleash these automatons across Earth?_

The Justice League Watchtower satellite was now coordinating a global effort to repel the attack, but so far the nature and meaning had gone unexplained. Diana and others had identified the attackers as the Titans of Greek lore, but the question on everyone's mind, if not on their lips, remained _why?_

Something deep and primal within Diana feared that she would not like the answer. Her experience had taught her to _never_ like the answer.

Her Justice League communicator buzzed, but when she answered it, it was not a fellow member of the League whose voice rang out of the other end.

"Wonder Woman, it's Wonder Girl."

"Cassie!" Diana nearly spat the name as her ax severed another OMAC's head. Her shield blocked a flurry of Laser blasts from two more. "This is a secure frequency! How did you contact me on this channel?"

"Gear can work wonders given enough time," said Wonder Girl. "Listen, I've got several members of the Titans and JLU up here. We're going to try and break inside Hyperion and shut him down from the inside out."

Diana grimaced. She could scarcely admit to herself that the being—who she instinctively knew to be the Titan Hyperion—was a machine. "Be careful," Diana said. "Who do you have?"

"Stargirl, Static, Beast Boy, and the new Teen Titan, Ragnarök." Wonder Girl paused a minute, and Diana started to form her objections on her throat. She never got to voice them.

"Look," said Cassie. "I know it's not a power house team, but it's the best I have available at the moment. Robin and I know what we're doing, even if we don't see eye to eye."

Diana finished off the nearest OMACs. "Very well," Diana said. "May Athena protect you."

"You too," Cassie said softly. "Wonder Girl out."

Diana turned, lowering her ax and buckler. The sun and the heat that radiated off Hyperion beat down on her, and though her skin would not burn like a mortal's, she was drenched with perspiration. She wiped her forehead dry, but as her ax and silver bracelet flashed across her vision, she saw in them the reflection of a figure behind her.

Diana spun around to see a man behind her, twelve feet tall and clad in armor. His helmet and the mighty hammer in his hand gave his identity away.

"Thor," Diana whispered. "What is the meaning of this?"

"Yggdrasil must be purged," Thor said. "The branches that bear toxic fruit must be pruned."

The Norse god raised the mighty Mjolnir and Diana found herself once again battling a god.

**

* * *

**High on the command deck of the Watchtower, Mr. Terrific watched as reports poured in from across the globe—superheroic agents on every continent were reporting the same thing—Zeus in New York City, Shiva in Bangladesh, Anubis in Cairo, Marduk in Baghdad.

The irony did not escape Mr. Terrific, an atheist, when he opened a channel to all agents and spoke. "Ladies and Gentlemen, be on your guard. The gods are attacking. I repeat, the gods are attacking."

**

* * *

**Wonder Girl was sick of fighting OMACs by the time she and her party reached the shields of Hyperion, and the blinding light didn't help matters any. She pulled her goggles down over her eyes, the phototropic lenses darkening. Behind her, Static hovered on his metal disk and a little green humming bird hovered by his head. Stargirl and her cosmic staff carried Ragnarök.

"What's the frequency of the shield?" asked Wonder Girl, hoping the force field operated on the same principles that both Robin and Static's partner Gear had assumed it would.

Ragnarök reached up and tapped twice on the side of his black-and-green visor. "335 Megahertz."

Wonder Girl nodded. "Stargirl, Static, think you can punch a hole?"

Static and Stargirl chirped affirmatives and then unleashed energy blasts, Static his electricity and Stargirl an attack from the cosmic staff. The blasts tore into the shield, punching a hole in it the size of a minivan. Cassie and Stargirl immediately flew through the breach, and the green humming bird morphed into a gnat and zipped through the hole as it collapsed.

Immediately as the hole in the force field closed, the electric glow around Static's disk vanished, and he flipped it up with his feet, catching it even as the gnat transformed into a Pterodactyl and caught him.

"Guess Richie was right about the force field blocking the planet's electromagnetic field," Static said.

All the teens shielded their eyes as they drew closer to the glowing Titan of Myth, following close behind the demi-goddess Wonder Girl. She slammed into the side of Hyperion, punching a hole in his metallic exterior, a hole which the others quickly slipped through; the pterodactyl shifted into the humanoid form of Beast Boy as it entered the innards of the Titan. They found themselves inside some sort of metal corridor that reminded Cassie of the inside of a starship, like the kind you would see in a low-budget sci-fi production. Amber metal tubes lined the halls and bulkheads separated the corridor into segments every five yards.

"I'm surprised there aren't any other defenses," Ragnarök said, standing up. Wonder Girl glared at him. He was a member of the Teen Titans from Jump City, a new guy. Apparently he was from a parallel universe where all the Titans had been killed except for himself and Beast Boy; he had no natural or magical powers, but instead proved Arthur C. Clarke correct in his assertion that sufficiently advanced technology was indistinguishable from magic. The green and blue alien armor Ragnarök wore was powered by an artifact that gave the teen geokinetic powers. Though those abilities were relatively limited compared to more powerful geokinetics like Terra. His pretentious sounding name came from a video game attack he'd ripped off, and had nothing to do with his actual power level.

Ragnarök's real tactical worth, according to Robin, was the armor itself—and the threat-assessment visor that came strapped to his head.

"Dude, never say you expected more defenses!" Beast Boy said. "You're going to make this thing conjure up more defenses!"

Wonder Girl started to dismiss Beast Boy's worry as the stuff of horror movie fantasy, when a laser blast slammed into the side of her head. Pain shot through her skull, even as the rest of the team jumped between her and the attacker. As soon as she could see clearly, Cassie looked up to see Stargirl and Static dismantle an OMAC.

"Come on," she said, cupping the burn on the side of her head with her hand. "We're invaders here and these OMACs are the antibodies. Let's see if we can't find the heart or the brain of this thing and shut it down."

**

* * *

**_El Paso, Texas_

Jaime's fingers tapped nervously on the outside of his cell phone as he paced back and forth in his back yard.

"She didn't say where," he said into the receiver.

"_How are we supposed to find this mystery woman if we don't know where to look?"_

"I don't know." Jaime grimaced, his chest and gut tight with anxiety. "I was hoping you'd help. This sort of magical thingy is your field."

_"Magical thingies can come in many shapes and sizes. There are magical systems as small as an atom and magical systems that encompass the entire universe. I'm just one girl, Jaime. This sounds like Dr. Fate's territory."_

Jaime shrugged, aware of the fact that the person with whom he was speaking could not actually see the shrug. "Well she must have chosen me for a reason, right?"

An exasperated sigh came from the speaker._"Lemme see what I can find out."_

Jaime nodded and heard the phone on the other end go dead. He closed his own and turned around to take a seat—and found himself staring directly into the eyes of a beautiful young woman.

"AUGH!" Jaime's heart raced. "Don't do that, Traci!"

The gorgeous Asian sorceress Traci 13 stood in a long white jersey with a black 13 emblazoned on the chest; she held a magic staff in her left hand, and a small iguana sat on her left shoulder. Also, she had not been there a second earlier.

"Do what?" she chirped.

"No teleporting into my personal space, please."

She just gave him a wry smile and did not apologize. She had Jaime wrapped tightly enough around her finger that she didn't have to. "You're going to help me look through my magic books to figure out who these so-called personifications of Delirium and Death are."

Traci waved a hand and multiple volumes of arcane tomes appeared in the air and hovered over to the wooden picnic table in the Reyes' back yard. Jaime groaned inwardly and sat down, flipping open one of the ancient grimoires and helping his magically-inclined _novia_ work.

* * *

Lasers lanced down the rust-colored corridor and the teen heroes hit the wall. Hyperion's winding innards were full of the glowing blue OMACs, and this time it was Stargirl and Beast Boy who reacted first; the former blasted away two OMACs with her cosmic staff while Beast Boy darted down the corridor as a rat, then transformed into a kangaroo, leaping up and leaning back on his tail before delivering a powerful kick with both legs. The OMAC slammed into the wall, and before it could recover, it was speared through the red eye on its chest with the horn of a green rhinoceros.

At the end of the present corridor, the path branched off to the left and right, the left winding further through the innards of the Titan and the right corridor ending abruptly at a glowing amber door, hexagonal in shape. Wonder Girl used her godlike strength to smash into the door until it bent and broke open, then tossed the twisted remains of the warm magic-forged metal into the room beyond.

The team climbed through the hole into a large room, circular and ringed around a large construct in the middle that hanged down from the ceiling. Some sort of machine generated a force field in which glowing blue globules hovered, the apparatus extending from the height of the tall room all the way down to a few feet above the floor. On the far end of the room, a computer terminal sat, the screen blank.

"I think this is important," Ragnarök said, looking around. "Whatever those blue-things are, they're loaded with magic energy."

Beast Boy held his green hand up to the force field around the globes. "And heat," he said.

"This isn't the heart, though," Ragnarök said.

"What is it?"

"I don't know, but it isn't generating enough power to keep this thing airborne. It's being piped in from somewhere else, through the machine on the ceiling."

Wonder Girl looked up at the apparatus, noticing how the walls of the room went from amber to gold the higher they got. "See if you can get anything out of that terminal," she ordered.

Ragnarök and Static went to work at the terminal. The control keys were labeled, but not in English. Ragnarök tapped his visor. "Huh, that's weird," he said. "This is written in Interlac, but the dialect is different than what I'm used to. It must be some primitive form of the language."

"That would make sense," Cassie said. "The Titans are ancient. But you can read it, right."

"Hrm..." Ragnarok tapped the controls some more. "Well that's disturbing. We basically seem to be in a giant mechanical reproductive organ."

"Someone designed these things a bit too literally," Static said. "I'm surprised we haven't encountered any _literal_ stomach or intestines."

Cassie winced. She was the daughter of Zeus—sister to Wonder Woman. The lore of ancient Greece had changed, definite, initiated her life. And now it seemed that the very Titans, the progenitors of her gods, were themselves constructs of mortal hands. And she had spent her first fourteen years oblivious to the impact of the Greek gods on her life.

How would Diana react?

She was snapped out of her pondering by Stargirl, who tapped on her shoulder. "Guys, I think I know who built this thing," she said, pointing with her cosmic staff.

The team looked up to the top of the machine; from this side, one of the panels had a logo emblazoned on it in red and black and white; two parallelograms arranged, one above the other with their corner's touching, on a white circle in a field of red.

The emblem of Vandal Savage.

**

* * *

**The second day of the Titans' attack began with millions of refugees fleeing the cities under assault, out in to the country. OMACs followed faster than the heroes could keep up, disabling cars and forcing pedestrians to flee on foot. Meanwhile, Wayne Tower collapsed when the Titan Menoetius sent a massive energy bolt from its spear, devastating a huge portion of downtown Gotham. All across America, similar devastation wracked the cities.

All across the world, the Titans continued to attack.

Batman himself, exhausted from fighting, left Gotham in charge of the Outsiders while he paid a visit to a prison in Prague. The dark halls had been abandoned by most of the guards, expecting the OMACs, the gods, or the Titans themselves to set their sights on their city.

"Vandal Savage," the Dark Knight growled from the shadows.

The immortal approached the bars of his cell, his narrow eyes seeming to glow in the darkness of his cell.

"Batman," said the immortal. "What is the occasion for this visit?"

"Cut the crap," Batman hissed. "Wonder Girl broke into Hyperion yesterday; they found your emblem inside the Titans of Myth. This is your handiwork."

"But of course." Savage smiled wickedly. "The Titans. My most magnificent achievement."

"How," demanded Batman. "Why? What do you gain from destroying the world you've been trying to rule for eons? Why only now?"

"You seem to have made some erroneous assumptions," Savage said. "This attack is not my doing. To be truthful, I have no idea who is responsible for the current assault."

"But your mark—"

"My mark has been on the Titans for ten thousand years, Dark Knight. Allow me to tell you a story. The beginning of this story is not in the present, or even the past, but the future. The 853rd century, to be exact."

Batman's eyes narrowed.

Savage continued. "My future self manipulated and murdered his way to the leadership of a planet, and led the people of that planet on an incredible construction project. The Titans of Myth, combining the height of technology with the most powerful sorcery money could by. The ultimate machines—at least that was the plan."

"You never finished them," Batman realized aloud.

"My future self finished twenty-one before the Justice Legion descended on the planet. The Titans were sent back in time to ancient Earth to protect them, but we made it look as though they were destroyed so that the Justice Legion wouldn't pursue them."

"There's more to the story." Batman narrowed his eyes. "You must have lost control of them some time in the past. Otherwise why take over Germany, or try to take over Kasnia?"

"Indeed. It's a great tale that ended in a gotterdammerung worthy of an epic poem, though only hints of it ever made it into popular lore." Savage stroked his beard. "The Titans gave birth to a race of gods, and through those gods I ruled the world. But they slowly developed something I did not intend—a will of their own. Gods and Titans took sides, and in the end, my side lost. The gods began accepting worship for their own sakes, and the Titans were put to rest."

Batman leaned forward and raised his voice. "How do I stop them?" he demanded.

"What makes you think I'd be willing to tell you?"

"If you don't, there's a good chance you'll be destroyed along with the rest of this world. Your immortality has kept you alive a long time, Savage. But would it hold up to the destruction of your body?"

"Very well," Savage said. "You need the Gorgon's head."

"Medusa?" Batman didn't think it sounded right. According to Wonder Woman, Medusa was a living demon, imprisoned for thousands of years in Tartarus. It didn't sound like a weapon.

"No, not her. The legends eventually conflated them, but the Gorgon's Head that put down the Titan Atlas and eventually all the others was a weapon forged by the greatest craftsmen from among the gods, designed to control the Titans" Savage turned and looked at the wall of his cell. "But it was designed for a god to use, and the fact that the world still persists reveals a small blessing. Whoever has the Gorgon's Head is very much human, and is unable to fully utilize its power. The strain on their mind to do what they've managed to do so far must be incredible."

Expecting a reaction from the Dark Knight, Savage turned back in his direction—

To find that he was already gone.

**

* * *

**

"We need your help," said Blue Beetle.

Before him stood the teen superhero Kid Devil, former sidekick to Blue Devil. Behind him stood Traci 13 as well as two others that Jaime had recruited—Anita Fite, the Jamaican powerhouse also known as Empress, and a patchwork of human parts calling himself Young Frankenstein.

"Whoa, dude, I fight crime," said Kid Devil. "But this saving the world stuff is way out of my league. I mean I'm the ex-sidekick to Blue Devil. That's not a great track record."

"Don't be a chicken!" Traci said, tapping the demon-boy on the head with her staff. "We need you. Anyone with the ability to capture one of the Endless is crazy powerful, and we'll need someone who can take a beating like you."

"Yeah, so I'm just cannon fodder? And what's an Endless?"

Traci summoned one of her magic books and hovered it over in front of Kid Devil's face. "From what we've been able to find out, the Endless are seven constants of the universe, powers that have existed for billions of years and will continue to exist until the end of time—personifications of universal truths: Destiny, Death, Dream, Desire, Despair, Delirium, and Destruction."

"And we're rescuing—Death?" Kid Devil blinked. "As in the Grim Reaper himself?"

"_Her_self," Blue Beetle corrected. "At least all the old texts referred to her as 'Grandmother Death'."

"She doesn't sound so grim, mon," Empress interjected. "Though a reaper she is."

Kid Devil grimaced, staring at his bare, clawed feet and flicking his pointed tail around. Every instinct in his head was telling him to run away, not to get involved. He'd get himself killed.

But something deeper, something in his gut, told him to go with them. That the fate of the universe depended on it.

And Eddie Bloomberg wasn't about to argue with the fate of the universe.

"Fine. I'll go. Do we know where it.. _she._.. is being held?"

Blue Beetle nodded. "We have a way to find her. Something as big as one of the Endless being captured doesn't happen in a vacuum. The fact that people are still dying means she must have been replaced, and Traci said she can track the point where the replacement started taking souls from the world."

Traci held up her magic rod. "Stand back, everyone."

She closed her eyes. **"**_**REPERIO LETUM**_**!"**

**

* * *

**"No luck," Superman's voice crackled over the Batcomputer speakers. "The tactic that Wonder Girl's team used to punch through Hyperion's shields in Boston is no longer working. The Titans have started fluctuating the frequencies of their shields so fast we can't lock on and get a match. We even tried doing a spectrum-shifting shot from the Watchtower canon; we punched a hole in Rhea, but now they're using multiple layers of energy shielding."

"Understood," Batman said. He had already related everything he had learned from Vandal Savage to Superman, though they both agreed that it was best not to tell Diana yet. She was on edge enough, having had to evacuate the city she had adopted so recently. More than half of Boston was in ruins, and other cities where the Titans had attacked weren't fairing any better.

Batman switched the computer off and prepared to head out in the Batwing and do what he could to protect refugees from the OMACs.

Then he sensed someone, an imperceptible-to-most shift in the lighting of the room. He glanced over, expecting to see Alfred, but instead found himself staring into a beautiful and familiar face.

"Talia!" Batman walked towards her, the daughter of his most powerful enemy. "What are—"

"I've come to help," she said; the gravity of her voice gave Bruce pause. "I've come to tell you who is behind all this."

And suddenly, the pieces of the puzzle clicked in Bruce's mind. The focus on cars and industry—the tendency of the OMACs to kill only those who attacked them and leave innocents unharmed. This wasn't a crusade against the people of Earth, but a crusade for the Earth itself.

"_**Ra's,**_" Batman growled.

"Indeed, my Beloved."

**

* * *

**Chains of yellow energy wrapped around the arms and necks of the Guardians of the universe as they were slowly marched into a row of Science Cells. There they would await their tribunal—and their executions for crimes against the universe.

Sinestro smiled grimly, lifting the prone form of John Stewart with the power of his ring.

"Oa has fallen. The Lanterns are defeated, and the Guardians imprisoned. What have you to say, John Stewart?"

"Kiss my—"

Sinestro's fist lashed out and struck John in the face, rattling the Lantern and breaking his train of thought.

"Defiant to the last," Sinestro said. "Perhaps I'll break you yet. You see, I've seen secrets of the universe that most beings can barely begin to comprehend, and I've seen one that puzzles me. The Earth—your home planet. It's at the center of the Multiverse. And I want to know why."

"You're crazy," John said. "Earth is too well defended even for your corps. Half of your men died fighting the Lanterns."

"And half of your Lanterns died fighting my men," Sinestro spat. "But rest assured Earth will fall. And I will find out its secrets. Why that insignificant speck of a planet is at the center of creation. Even if I have to lose a thousand more to find out."


	4. Land of Confusion

**Deus Ex Machina**

**Chapter Four  
**

**Land of Confusion**

**

* * *

**_New Genesis_

Supertown was the first victim. The vast airborne metropolis of the New Gods ceased to function, its power systems failing. The city fell, crashing against the lush forests of New Genesis.

Lightray slowly peaked around the corner of the ruined arch, looking out towards the crumbling Temple of the Source in the distance, standing defiantly against the darkened sky. It was a long way there on foot. Lightray willed himself to fly one last time, but found it impossible. The sickness had spread too far at this point. He still had his mind, but his body was dying.

Lightray feared what would come crawling out of the ruins of Supertown at night. After the city had fallen, it had been the animals that next succumbed—once harmless birds and rodents in the forests, great beasts on the open grassy plains. Their eyes had glowed red, burning with the flame of Anti-Life. They had grown savage, feral. Many were destroyed in the name of saving the lives of New God and Bug alike. Many more still roamed free.

He motioned to his companion that the coast was clear, and the bearded elder crept towards Lightray.

"It's still about seven miles on foot, Highfather," Lightray said.

"The Source preserve us," Highfather prayed. He stepped forward and strode on through the arch as Lightray led the way, shepherd's staff at ready, as if fearing an imminent attack.

The Bugs had been next—invisible corruption spreading through their brains. At first it was a subtle hostility. But Anti-Life is sinister, and soon the entire species was corrupted. And after that, the New Gods succumbed too.

First, those who had participated in the massacre of Apokalips…

And lately, even those who had opposed it…

In the distance, a loud shriek echoed through the stone and steel canyons of Supertown. Frenzied cries signaled a dusk-time hunting party.

"They're after us!" Lightray cursed. "Run for it, Highfather. I'll hold them off."

The two remaining New Gods darted through the streets, winding through the deserted streets that had scarcely been used since the New Gods had first learned to fly millennia ago. In the distance, Lightray could hear the terrifying chant of the hunting party.

_**"LIFE EQUALS DEATH— SELF EQUALS DARK SIDE!"**_

**

* * *

**

_Keystone City_

Buildings streaked by as Bart Allen zoomed up the side of a wall and into a window of a two-story brick apartment. The building had taken so much structural damage from the OMAC lasers that it was about to collapse. Bart used the Speed Force to distort time as he darted through the innards of the building searching for people trapped inside.

Behind him, Wally picked up a small child with big black eyes full of fear.

"We don't have much time left," he said, hefting the child's weight onto his biceps. "I saw another wave coming from the south."

Bart grimaced. Another little kid was caught under a collapsed china cabinet, a large gash in her leg from the broken glass. Bart pushed the cabinet off, taking care to stay patient. If he moved it too fast, she could get cut again.

The cabinet fell aside with a thud and the crash of broken glass, and Bart picked the bleeding child up.

"I already searched the rest of the building the last time you blinked," Bart told Wally. "These two are the only ones left."

"I'm way ahead of you," Wally said. "Let's get out of here."

Bart and Wally started running, Kid Flash and Flash, drawing on the power of the extra dimensional energy source known as the Speed Force. Wally had discovered the Speed Force four years ago after saving the world from the combined threat of Brainiac and Lex Luthor, though he and other Speedsters had been unknowingly tapping into it for far longer.

Time and space distorted as the two ran towards the exit, out the window and down the side of the building. Everything seemed to be standing still, and a brick that had come dislodged from the side of the damaged building floated in mid air. When they got to the bottom of the building, time sped back up and normal speed reasserted itself.

A couple of EMS workers ran forward to collect the two children from Flash and Kid Flash and escorted them towards and ambulance.

Bart, despite his impatience to do something about the problem, felt his mouth twitch into a light smile.

"No better feeling," Wally said, having noticed.

At his belt, the Flash's communicator buzzed, but it wasn't the Justice League; it was the police commissioner of Central City, the Keystone's twin across the Missouri River.

"What's up, comish?" Flash asked.

"As if things weren't bad enough," said the commissioner, sounding haggard. "Captain Cold has barricaded himself in the Flash Museum—he's terrorizing the area. We've already had three officers frozen solid."

"We'll be right on it," Flash said.

"We?!" Bart blurted, his eyes widening. "Flash, I wanna go fight the OMACs with the Teen Titans. You can handle Captain Cold yourself!"

"No way," Wally said. "Just because I'm incredibly good looking and hilarious doesn't mean I'm stupid. Think, Bart. Captain Cold is obviously setting up a trap, which means I may need back up."

"He picked a great time to start this grife!"

"Bart, just because they're future cuss words doesn't mean I'm going to let you use them."

Bart scowled.

Wally nodded, starting down the street. "Now come on!" he said before blasting off at Super Speed. Bart started running too, following his mentor, his mind racing with a thousand other things he'd rather be doing than fighting Captain Cold.

Flash and Kid Flash had just made it to the bridge across the river when a blur of yellow and red slammed into Wally, a thunderous crack resounding. Wally flew backwards and Bart turned and shouted for him. But then something slammed hard into Bart's back and sent him tumbling, and a blur of yellow and green filled his vision.

Bart looked up to see Zoom, one of Flash's arch enemies, looming over Wally. And over himself he saw Inertia, his own evil super-speedster clone standing on the bridge above them.

"Gee willikers, Wally," Inertia said. "I think it's time to make this pair 'better heroes'."

His tone of voice made Bart think that making them better heroes was the last thing on Inertia's twisted mind.

"Yeeessssss," said Zoom. "Ithinkitis."

**

* * *

**

Two pairs of hiking boots pattered down on a decaying stone walkway; red vines and violet weeds grew through the cracks. Above the walkway, a massive labyrinth twisted and grew from the rocky surface of the mountain top, with enormous statues jutting out in every direction, seemingly heedless of gravity. High at the top of the palace the massive golden figure of Zeus, tarnished and corroded, stood looming over against the backdrop of a stormy grey sky.

One pair of boots stepped forward. "Great Hera!" Wonder Girl said. "What's happened here?"

Superboy stepped forward and stopped beside her."This place has seen better days. Cassie, do you really think we'll find anything here? It looks like Mount Olympus as been abandoned for ages."

"It hasn't." Cassie reached down and pulled a red weed from the cracked stone path. "Something is corrupting this place. Something evil enough to drive the gods insane with anger and bring the Titans out of hiding."

Superboy closed his eyes and listened to the air whistling through the stone tunnels of the palace, and of things slithering and crawling and marching.

"We're not alone," he said. "I hear movement. I hear heartbeats."

The two continued up an enormous flight of stairs so big they had to fly up them, past a decrepit well dug deep into the side of the mountain, and baths and swimming pools full of foul-smelling liquids.

Their path led them to a golden palisade that surrounded a building high on a peak of the mountain. Superboy hovered up to fly over the barrier, and then froze. He had heard something hissing, and he glanced left and right, not seeing anything…

He started to proceed when something heavy slammed into his side and he went careening into a marble column.

"Conner!" shouted Wonder Girl.

Superboy jerked his head up to see a huge hulking monster, like a cow walking on two legs; it raised a huge silver axe above its head, about to bring it down on Cassie. Her back was turned, and she couldn't see it.

"Cassie!" he shouted, pointing behind her. "Minotaur!"

The axe came down, but Cassie moved faster, bringing up the bracelets on her arms and catching the blade of the axe against them. Sparks flew, and Cassie broke off the guard with a parry and slugged the Minotaur in the face. Conner flew up beside her, smashing it again into the air and sending it soaring off into the distance. A loud cry rang out and suddenly hundreds of Minotaurs surrounded the two teens, alongside slithering things with lower bodies made of snakes and hair of writhing worms.

"Gorgons too," Cassie whispered.

"Geez, now I know how Kratos feels," Superboy said.

The Minotaurs raised their weapons and charged.

**

* * *

**

_Honolulu, Hawaii_

Hurricane winds buffeted the space ship as it arced through the sky towards the enduring Atlas. At the controls, Robin fought to keep it on course. The ship was the T-Defender, the rust-orange vessel used by the Teen Titans, and their target was undoubtedly the most famous of all the Titans of Myth, the one who held up the sky on his shoulders.

Robin reached up and turned the intercom on. "Get ready, Starfire."

His Tamaranean teammate had opted to stay outside the ship and catch him when he ejected, then get him the hell away from Atlas in case the plan failed. Robin reached down and flicked the last switch on, arming all the explosive weapons onboard the T-Defender and turning on the quantum oscillator, a theoretical device that would simulate the Martian Manhunter's intangibility powers in a field around the T-Defender. Robin didn't know if it would get the ship through Atlas' shields, but it was their only shot. Even the Justice League was no longer able to break through the shields of the Titans of Myth. Nearly every superhero on Earth was working rescue, leaving Earth's largely abandoned urban centers at the mercy of the ancient gods.

In Robin's mind, that wasn't good enough.

But their opponent wasn't worried. Atlas continued to ignore the Teen Titans, instead continuing the mighty hurricane he had created around Hawaii and trudging through the streets of its cities, smashing buildings attacking rescue squads. The difficulty of evacuating the island was the reason Robin had chosen to use the quantum oscillator on Atlas instead of any of the other Titans of Myth.

The indicator light on Robin's control panel flashed red, and Robin pulled the ejector lever. The glass blasted off his cockpit and his seat went flying out into the storm, the winds slamming into him and blowing him far away from the ship in a matter of seconds. Suddenly a pair of warm orange arms wrapped around him and Robin felt himself pulled the other way.

"I have you!" Starfire shouted as they arced away.

The T-Defender flashed and slammed into the magic shield around Atlas, erupting into a brilliant burst of flame.

"NO!" Robin shouted, watching as his gambit exploded into a ball of fire against the force field. He felt Starfire's grip on him tighten, and nearby, Raven joined them, hovering by their side in the fierce winds.

"It was a long shot anyway," Raven said. "And Cyborg's team has almost finished evacu—"

Just then, another light flashed inside the force field, and the T-Defender, scorched and belching smoke, reappeared. Robin narrowed his eyes and smirked. A second went by, then two. Then the T-Defender slammed into Atlas' leg, a massive explosion erupting from the crash site and sending debris and force in every direction. The force field flickered as the explosion hit it, and Atlas fell to one knee, the impact of his incredible weight sending shockwaves through the deserted city streets.

Robin pulled out his communicator. "Robin to Batman—the quantum oscillator works. I repeat, the quantum oscillator works."

**

* * *

**

The fight between the speedsters had raged from the heart of America to the shores of the pacific in a matter of minutes, and now continued far out into the ocean—Flash and Kid Flash, Inertia and Zoom moving so fast that they stayed on the surface of the ocean, not sinking down through the salty waves. The waves themselves seemed frozen next to the speedsters' velocity, like silent stone imitations of the ocean molded by some ancient sculptor.

Wally slammed a fist into Zoom's face with a punch of nearly-infinite mass, and the super villain went flying through the air for a mile before skidding across the water's surface. He began to sink, but immediately struck at the water with enough force to repel himself upward and away from the surface, standing up on the adamant waves and running back towards Wally. He socked the Flash in the face, then tried to plant another fist in his gut, but Flash was faster and blocked the second attack, kneeing Zoom in the chest and staggering him backward, the unmoving ocean spraying tiny droplets of water that scattered so fast they would punch holes in ships miles away.

Kid Flash, meanwhile, darted past Inertia, running up a massive wave that seemed frozen in time. Inertia followed him, taunting him.

"Delusions of adequacy," Inertia spat. "That's your problem, Bart."

"No, it's just a line from a Weird Al song," Bart shot back, leaping off the static wave, landing hard and sinking into the water like cement. He waited for Inertia to jump off the wave after him, and then darted away with a burst of speed, causing his evil clone to fall into a pit.

Bart started reaching for water droplets in the air; he hurled them back at Inertia at near light-speed, pelting the clone with stinging droplets of infinitely massive brine.

Inertia dodged between them, zipping towards Kid Flash and ramming his elbow in to Bart's throat. Bart coughed as his trachea collapsed, retaliating with a flurry of light-speed punches as he gasped for breath. Inertia kicked him in the stomach, sending him skidding across the waves towards Flash.

"This isn't working," Flash said, grabbing Bart and pulling him to his feet. They both started running to stay atop the halcyon ocean. "And I don't know how much longer we can keep this level of speed up."

"Behind us," Kid Flash said, thumbing back to see Zoom and Inertia chasing after them. Behind them the combined force of their footsteps had created massive craters in the static surf which were combining into a huge trench in the ocean. Inertia reached out and grabbed the fabric of Bart's costume, jerking him backwards. Zoom jumped over them as they both tumbled into the crater.

Flash narrowed his eyes; a thought occurred to him and he smirked, giving himself a sudden burst of Speed and rocketing in front of Zoom, just as the obsessive villain reached for him, grabbing at air. Wally skidded to a relative halt several yards in front of Zoom, then began vibrating his molecules. A burst of heat slammed into Zoom, and the reverse Flash had to shield his face...

And when Zoom looked again as the heat wave dissipated... Flash was gone.

"Wwwwwhherrre didyougoFlaaaaaaaaaasssh...?" Zoom's head pivoted back and forth on his neck at lightspeed, the vertebrae on his neck nearly fusing with the violence of his motion. "Evenyou aaaaaaren't thaaaaatfast!"

Then a fist exploded from the water and clasped onto Zoom's ankle.

The reverse Flash's eyes shot wide with surprise for a split picoseconds, before the hand jerked down, pulling Zoom through the waves. And at that speed, it was as though he had been pulled through a solid block of marble. Under the waves, Flash greeted the evil speedster, slamming his fist into Zoom's face, the combined shock of pain overwhelming the Reverse Flash's brain and knocking him unconscious.

Wally surfaced to look for Bart and Inertia, only to be sprayed by a blast of salt water, a torrent of liquid being thrown around by some incredible force, and it was coming from a massive mountain of water that seemed suspended above sea level, defying gravity.

Flash ran to the top, and there he saw an enormous crater in the ocean the breadth of a football field and as deep as a stadium, two blurs, one of green and yellow and the other of yellow and red, running around the interior of the mountain. Kid Flash and Inertia. They were moving so fast Wally couldn't tell who was leading and who was following.

And then in a flash of light, Bart grabbed on to Inertia and slammed in from the middle of the crater to its base; a crackle of Speed Force energy arced out of Inertia and into Bart, and when it passed, Bart was standing, vibrating at lightspeed, his form blurry and out of sync with reality. Inertia seemed frozen in time...

Bart darted to the precipice of the crater and found Wally. "Flash, if we run around the outside of the crater, we should be able to collapse it before it forms a tidal wave."

"What did you do to Inertia?" the Flash blinked. When had Bart ever been this on top of things? Usually he was the one taking (or more often ignoring) orders, not giving them.

"I stole his Speed. He's experiencing things in normal time now. Now quick, run with me!"

Bart took off, and Wally decided all he could do at this point was follow.

**

* * *

**

The head of a Gorgon went sailing through the air, its neck spraying black blood, partially cauterized by Superboy's heat vision, even as three Sirens—beasts with the head of a woman and the body of a bird—tackled the Boy of Steel and started trying to tear the flesh from his bones with their razor sharp talons. Superboy growled and slammed his fists into the nearest Siren, using his tactile telekinesis to tear apart the beast's internal organs.

Another siren bit into Superboy's arm, tearing a strip of flesh off. He snarled in pain and punched the beast as hard as he could muster in the race, smashing the front part of its skull in.

The third Siren tried to tear into his back, when a golden lasso wrapped around its neck and Wonder Girl sent a charge of electricity down the rope, shocking the Siren to death.

"Damn it," Superboy hissed, cradling the wounded arm. "These things don't seem to realize I'm supposed to have an impregnable force field around me. I feel so... pregnable."

"It's the magic, Conner." Wonder Girl smashed another Minotaur in the face, then grabbed him by the horns and tossed him off Mount Olympus. "Even Superman is vulnerable to magic."

More monsters appeared, driving the duo ever up the hill towards a palace... And Wonder Girl noticed that that palace looked somehow less decayed, less worn than the others. She flew up and made a run for it. "Follow me, Conner!"

Superboy followed, dodging more sirens and their wicked cousins, the Harpies as they flew. The entrance to the palace was huge, with a stone awning held up by marble columns the thickness of redwood trees.

A granite hallway awaited them on the inside, and Superboy and Wonder Girl ran down it, trodding over a carpet intricately-woven with images from ancient Greek lore, and past walls draped with fine silk. Finally, they reached a circular chamber and stopped dead in their tracks.

Before them were five human shapes, twelve feet tall, reclining around a podium in the middle, where an orb glowed with faint orange light, but it paled next to the light with which the figures themselves glowed. One of them stood, regarding the newcomers with pointed curiosity. Over her shoulders there was draped a golden aegis.

"Athena!" Wonder Girl gasped, kneeling in reverence. Superboy did as well, though more out of conscientiousness than any religious devotion.

"Daughter of Zeus," she said softly. "Cassandra Sandsmark, my half sister. And her lover, Kon-El. Welcome to what remains of the splendor of Olympus."

Beside Athena, Artemis stood, her bare feet making no sound as she strode beside the other goddess. "What has brought them here, Athena?"

"We've come to see what is driving the gods mad!" Wonder Girl said. "I thought we might find clues here. I heard from a mortal known as Raven that she saw a premonition of Olympus attacking the Rock of Eternity."

Nearby, a bearded god stood, walking with a cane towards the orb in the center. "That Premonition was fulfilled days ago, little demigod. The Rock of Eternity was destroyed by the combined might of the gods, and its energies scattered over the mortal world."

"I know who that is, it's Hephaestus," Superboy said.

"Shush, Conner," Cassie whispered.

One of the gods stirred, as if waking up, and then he was suddenly standing beside Artemis. From the wings on his helmet and sandals, he was obviously Hermes; the goddess beside him appeared to be Demeter.

"We're the only gods left," Hermes said. "Save for maybe some of those in the underworld. We've not heard from them. We'd all be coo-coo like everyone else if it weren't for Hephaestus here."

Demeter spoke. "Indeed, Hephaestus saved the five of us by forging the orb you see here on this pedestal." The goddess motioned to it. "Its magic acts as a barrier to the Chaos that claws at our minds. Apollo prophesied that it would be necessary, but he succumbed to the madness before it was finished."

"What's causing it?" Superboy asked.

"Chaos was awakened," Athena said. "It's a void whose cries drive the gods mad. It was sealed away by Zeus thousands of years ago in the bowels of Tartarus, but something has disturbed its rest. It will not be safe for us to leave the protection of this chamber until the void is silenced."

**

* * *

**

Beams of energy zipped by Cyborg and Starfire as the two flew closer towards the reactor core of Atlas, OMACs swarming like metaphorical antibodies to take down the invaders. Cyborg dodged left and Starfire flew up and to the right, blasting with a combination of their sonic cannon and starbolt attacks at the same OMAC. They missed the eye in the middle of its chest, though, and the energy reflected off harmlessly.

"Star, don't shoot the ones I'm shooting," Cyborg called.

Starfire dodged another beam. "How am I to know which ones I am not to be shooting?"

"Use your alien mind-reading powers or somethin'!"

"But I do not—"  
_**  
KRAKOOM!**_

A column of black energy slammed into the force field around the generator. "This bickering is pointless," hissed Raven. "Focus your fire on the reactor—even technology from the 853rd century doesn't function without its power source."

The reactor glowed, the transparent membrane around it thickening.

"Rae, I think it heard you," Cyborg said.

"It's a mindless machine," said Raven. "If it had a consciousness, I would have felt it."

Starfire flew up, blasting several OMACs to pieces and then sending out a massive beam of solar energy into the reactor shield. "Raven, the potential processing power of a computer system as large as one of these Titans built with modern Earth technology is tremendous. In the 853rd century, that processing power is increased by a magnitude of 11 to the 34230574325th power. It is perfectly feasible that that the computer could interpret human intentions even without possessing a psyche."

"Either that," Raven said, "Or these things have a puppet master."

The Teen Titans tore into another wave of OMACs, destroying the protectors of the core, while Raven removed a device from the shadows that formed her cloak—a second, smaller version of the phase oscillator. Attached to it was enough plastic explosive to level half of Jump City.

"Courtesy of Arsenal," she explained. "The reactor is so advanced that the greatest minds on the planet haven't been able to even guess at how it works. It runs on a combination of quantum mechanics and magic that make Control Freak's techno-sorcery look like cheap parlor magic. Robin didn't want to take any chances."

Cyborg shrugged. "Fine by me."

Cyborg and Starfire held off the OMACs while Raven planted the explosive—a task that was somewhat out of her field of expertise—then together the Teen Titans took off, retracing their steps through Atlas' corridors.

As they escaped into the open air, a resounding BOOM echoed through the behemoth, followed by an earth-shattering, psyche-searing blast of confusion and light and sound, and Starfire, Raven, and Cyborg suddenly knew no more.

Down below, on the ocean and three miles away, the blast picked up Flash and Kid Flash and flung them far away.

**

* * *

**

Diseased hands reached out and grabbed Lightray, pulling with inconceivable strength. The New God was moved off his feet and the slave to Anti-Life that grabbed him drooled acidic venom onto his skin as she prepared to whisper the Equation in his ear.

Lightray snarled and blasted her with his namesake rays of light, sending the wretch sprawling.

"Sollis, I told you not to use lethal force. They aren't themselves." Highfather's words stung the young New God, and he winced, regretting his decision.

"It's hard," he said. "The Anti-Life is affecting me even now, even though I'm keeping my wits. I'm losing my moral resolve, Highfather. Slowly but surely, I'm losing it."

"Then do what the heroes of Earth would do," Highfather said. "Press on. Fight on."

Highfather and Lightray darted towards the temple, of the source, now within running distance. Anti-Life slaves, sprinting on legs empowered by the evil will of Darkseid, ran after them, bugs and New Gods alike. Lightray turned and made photon walls to stop their advance, but even as he did so, he could feel his powers ebbing. They might hold out for a few days yet, but not much longer….

And then, before them, a red-tinged barrier appeared, and Highfather and Lightray slammed into it, beating their fists against it futilely. All around the temple of the Source, the barrier materialized, and Lightray and Highfather looked up in the sky to see its origin…

There, above the clouds, in front of the silhouette of Apokalips, a glowing red skull hovered, imbibing the souls of mortals and using their energy to rain Anti-Life down on New Genesis.


	5. The Lonely God

**Deus Ex Machina**

**Chapter Five  
**

**The Lonely God**

**

* * *

**

_Gotham City_

The sun had not set for long when his feet first fell on the soft gray carpet of Wayne Manor. Tim Drake hadn't been in the house in a long time, but he still knew his way around instinctively. The power grid to the mansion was down, so there was no light in the house. Still, it wasn't hard to find the old grandfather clock.

Tim reached up and set the ancient timepiece to the minute of Thomas and Martha Wayne's murder. The clock slid away and Tim slipped through the corridor behind it, taking his time traversing down the long stone staircase. He was tired, and a cold dull ache had wrapped itself around his whole body, clinging to his muscles with the intensity of one of Starfire's hugs.

There was light—though not much warmth—down in the Cave. The Batcave had its own power supply, and the hum of the generator echoed up through the cavern. Other than that, the cave was eerily quiet.

As he reached the bottom of the stairs, the smell of cave water and bat waste washed over him, and Tim had the strangest sensation of coming home. Then a voice pierced the relative silence.

"Alfred?" called the voice of Batman. "Is that you?"

Tim didn't say anything.

"Alfred, I thought I told you to stay out of Gotham. It's dangerous to be near a large city."

"I'm not Alfred," Tim said, stepping into a lighted area by the giant penny. He could now see Bruce, his cape draped over his shoulders and his cowl hanging from the back of his neck, staring down from the chair in front of the massive Batcomputer.

"Tim." Bruce said standing up. He walked down from the platform on which the computer sat. "What are you doing here?" he demanded curtly.

"You haven't been seen in the superhero community for days. You're not answering JLU communication channels or your mobile. Knowing you, that either meant you were dead, or you were hard at work on a lead, the latter being more likely since you did manage to pass on my message about the quantum oscillator."

"That didn't answer my question." Bruce crossed his arms over his chest. Tim winced from his glare. Batman was still bitter. Four years ago, Tim went through a hell that only the mind of the Joker could have devised, and in the end he had paid the Joker back with a harpoon through the chest. The ordeal had cost Tim a year of his life, a year of his sanity, and when he was finally in his right mind again, Bruce had forbid him to be Robin.

For three years, Tim had flouted that order by continuing the fight—and not in the shadows like Bruce preferred, but openly, in the public eye as leader of the Teen Titans.

It came as no surprise to Tim that Bruce was furious. Lying would not help tame that anger.

"I want to help you," he said. "If you haven't figured out who we're dealing with by now, then I must have surpassed you as the world's greatest detective."

"Out of the question," Bruce said flatly. "It's not up for debate. Ra's is dangerous, Tim. Perhaps even more dangerous than the Joker."

"Are you trying to scare me invoking that name?" Tim stepped forward and pointed a finger at Batman's face. "Damn it, Bruce, it's always been dangerous. It was dangerous the first time I went up against Two-Face. And you think fighting Slade wasn't dangerous? Or how about Trigon the Terrible? What happened to me was never your fault to start with, and it's always been my choice to do this."

Bruce grimaced. "I should never have let you make that choice. You were too young."

"You let Batgirl make that choice."

"Batgirl is different. She was trained to be a weapon since birth. In pure fighting prowess, she may be even better than I am."

Batman turned, his cap billowing in the dank air.

"Tim, this discussion is over."

A sudden, almost-imperceptible shift in Batman's tone piqued Tim's curiosity. He looked around the room, extending his senses away from the narrow field of his conversation with Bruce; he realized then that they were not alone, and he focused in on a nearly-invisible figure, hugging the shadows in a pitch-black corner of the cave.

Tim narrowed his eyes. "What is she doing here?"

The figure stepped into the light, confirming her identity.

"My father is close to destroying the Earth he claims to love so much," Talia al Ghul said. "I'm helping your mentor find him and put an end to the slaughter."

"And you trust her, Bruce?" Tim demanded, motioning to her with his hand. "You think her infatuation with you outweighs her loyalty to her father?"

"I think we're running out of time and running out of options," Bruce said. "Go. Help people as best you can. Leave Ra's to me."

**

* * *

**

_Elsewhere_

The Jeep rolled to a stop in front of a wrought iron gate at the base of a hill, and five superheroes piled out of the car. Traci 13 was the first to reach the gate, and she tapped it with her magic staff. An arc of blue light sparked from the tip of her staff to the gate, hissing and crackling, and she took a step back.

"This is definitely the place," she said. "It feels like whatever's in that house up there is grating against the fabric of reality itself."

Traci nodded toward an enormous gray mansion at the top of the hill, ancient and decaying, castle-like spires jutting up against the blood red sky.

Jaime Reyes stepped forward and a blue spot glowed on his back, erupting outward and covering him in the Blue Beetle armor. Behind him, Kid Devil, Empress, and Young Frankenstein all nodded their readies.

Young Frankenstein took a step forward and grabbed the iron gate at the top and bottom, ripping it off its hinges and hurling it over the stone fence. It rolled across the dusty yard, throwing up dirt, and fell against the hill.

Jaime had the Scarab's threat detectors working overtime as the five strode up to the mansion, and when they got to the top, the Scarab registered two blips directly ahead, standing on the front porch. The figures were a tall, broad-shouldered man with dark grey-ish skin and a small blonde girl in an orange dress.

"You've come to the wrong place," called the large man, his tuxedo bulging with the girth of his muscles. "Turn around and leave, or you will regret it."

"Don't be silly," the little girl said. "If they came all this way to play with us, we should let them have their fun."

"Look," Jaime said, stepping forward (with a nudge from Traci), "We're not here to fight you. We have reason to believe that someone is being held prisoner here. We want you to let her go."

Jaime wasn't sure what he had said, but the large man's eyes widened in surprise.

"You may not be looking for a fight, but you will have one if you do not leave," he said. "Mortals such as yourselves cannot withstand the might of Kalibak."

Jaime glanced to his side as Traci, Kid Devil, Young Frankenstein and Empress stepped up beside him.

"Either you let us in, or we're breaking in," Traci said. She lifted her staff and a faint orange aura flared to life around it.

Kalibak smirked. "So be it."

The man thundered forward, the wooden steps down from the porch of the mansion cracking under his weight. As he moved, his tuxedo stretched and ripped, his shaggy hair flaring and his skin turning golden.

No, not his skin—golden fur was sprouting all over his body, and when he finished transforming he looked like the fusion of a lion with a gorilla, an amber mane surrounding his feral face.

"Holy crap!" Kid Devil yelped.

"Does not frighten me," Young Frankenstein growled, surging forward and meeting Kalibak's charge. His green hands met with Kalibak's paws and the two swiftly locked in a struggle of pure brute force.

A burst of automatic fire from the porch pulled Jaime's attention away from Kalibak and Young Frankenstein and he turned to see the little girl holding an uzi, blasting away at Empress and Traci. Empress teleported out of the way, but Traci ran forward, holding up her staff and shouting something in Latin. The bullets started bouncing off an invisible force field and soon Traci had reached the porch.

Jaime was distracted again, though, because suddenly an incredible weight slammed into him and he went careening backwards.

He righted himself with help from his armor and looked up to see Kalibak standing over them with one of Young Frankenstein's arms clutched in his right hand. Jaime glanced at the composite superhero and saw him cradling the bloody stump where his arm used to be, seething.

Jaime growled, forming a fusion cannon with his armor and blasting Kalibak backwards into the banister of the porch. Kid Devil ran up, dodging a punch from Kalibak and kicking the lion-man in the face. Kalibak growled, grabbing Kid Devil by the horns and hurling him away, over Jaime's shoulder. Jaime shouted again, mentally telling the scarab to turn up the power.

"Let's see how you like it at ten jiggowatts!" he shouted, blasting away at Kalibak.

_Target identified as a New God,_ the Scarab told him.

"What's a New God?" Jaime asked; Kalibak got up, shrugging of the ten jiggowatt fusion cannon like an annoyingly hot shower

The Scarab told him some things he didn't really understand that amounted to 'Superhero Planets At War' and then Kalibak ran at him, resisting the power of the fusion cannon. The bolts were just bouncing off of him.

"You caught me off guard before, boy!" Kalibak shouted, lunging at Jaime. The Blue Beetle dived out of the way, switching to his proton blasters and retaliating with a flurry of red-white bolts of energy.

Meanwhile Traci reached the top of the stairs, smacking the gun out of the little girl's hand and sending it careening off the porch. The girl's eyes narrowed with annoyance and she took a half step back, reaching into a pocket on the front of her dress and pulling out an impossibly long cat of ninetails. She lashed it at Traci; the young mage threw up a shield, then goggled in horror as the whip completely ignored it. The tails of the whip struck her, shards of metal and glass in the fabric digging into Traci's flesh.

Traci grimaced as tears welled up in her eyes, using the biting pain as a focus for her magic and thrusting her hand forward.

"_RETRIBUTION_!" she shouted—and a black-tinged shockwave lashed out of her hand, slamming into the little girl and staggering her backwards. Just then, Empress teleported behind the girl, kicking her in the back.

She staggered forward, bending over on her hands and knees, her face twisting with rage. "You know, my name is Malice for a reason," she said. "I deeply resent pain, especially when its inflicted by mortals."

"I don't care what they call you," Empress said. "Pull a gun on me again and next time I'll aim my kick for the back of your head."

Malice grunted, snapping upright and snapping her hand up. "CHESSURE! Time to play!"

Traci and Empress both goggled, their attention immediately darting to their surroundings. In the black shadows of the first floor of the mansion, a huge sadistic grin appeared, suspended by nothing.

"Great, she has a familiar!" Traci barked.

Empress drew her sword from its cane. "I gathered."

"Kill them," Malice said.

Traci started to react, to defend herself, but before she could blink, a huge black claw erupted from the house, grabbing her about the waist and pulling her inside, closer to that big toothy mouth. She shoved her staff between herself and Chessure's mouth and shouted.

"_CLARUS LUX_!"

A brilliant burst of light erupted from the tip of her staff, and Chessure snapped back, its eyes vanishing and its mouth twisting into a scowl of pain. Traci raised her staff higher, pouring more energy into the spell—but the light was so bright now that it was blinding her, and she didn't see the shadow claw lash out. The claw slammed into the side of her staff and knocked it from her hands; the spell immediately ceased, and as she dived to reclaim her staff, another claw slammed into her, knocking her away—then coming for her throat. Traci reached up and drew a sigil in the air, shouting a word in Markovian that Ralph Dibny had taught her. A a small force pocket exploded to life around her hand, blocking the claw and giving her time to stand.

She rose, channeling some pure destructive force to her finger tips, even as the shadows regrouped in a corner and solidified into a hulking silhouette-body that might have been the shadow of a cougar, if cougars were twelve feet tall and had brilliant red glow-in-the-dark grins.

More claws—attached to writhing shadow tentacles—grew from Chessure's back and flew at Traci, but before she could react, Empress teleported between them, slicing into the claws with her sword cane. The claws flew off to the side, severed from their limbs. They quickly evaporated when they hit the ground.

Empress stepped out of the way, the claws following her now as she deftly took them down with her weapon.

"Blast it now!" she shouted.

Traci felt strangely compelled—not that she was apt to put up much resistance—to obey the order, and reached out with glowing points of light on all ten fingers.

"_CLARUS LUX_!" she thundered, and ten brilliant beams of light lanced out of her fingers, slamming into Chessure and blasting it backward through the rotting walls of the old mansion into another room.

Empress and Traci ran after it, leaping through the hole in the wall and blasting twin magic fire attacks as they entered the room…

The fire tore through chairs and tables and set a book case ablaze, but Chessure was nowhere to be seen.

"Reverto!" Traci said, extending her hand towards her staff in the other room. It hovered off the ground and floated towards her. But just as it was inches from her fingers, a black shadow swiped it, knocking it from her grasp.

Chessure leapt from the shadows, striking Empress in the chest and face and knocking her across the room. It raised a massive shadowy paw and smacked at Traci. She took a step backwards, tripping over the debris of a chair and falling. Chessure snarled and pounced on her, pinning her arms down with two massive paws, its head hovering over her. Chessure's enormous fanged grin dripped some liquid onto Traci's shoulder, the foul-smelling concoction burning like acid where it touched.

Traci snarled, focusing the pain into anger and glaring where Chessure's eyes should have been, where she felt a void of swirling energy vanishing into a pair of invisible singularities.

"_Exquisitus lux_!" she hissed, channeling all the power she could find from the nearest cities into her eyeballs. Beams tore out of her eyes and sliced into Chessure's shadow flesh; acrid smoke rose from the wound and Chessure reared back.

"Yo, it didn't like that," Empress said. She slammed into the shadow creature with her shoulder, knocking it off of Traci; it vanished into the darkness.

Empress helped Traci up. "What did you do to it?"

"Its eyes are a weak point," she said. "…But they're hidden behind some kind of void. I had to dump a lot of power into that void to do any damage, and—"

A tentacle abruptly seized Traci by the mouth, jerking her neck back painfully, and another entangled itself in Traci's arms and legs, holding her against the wall. At the same time, two more tentacles shot out of the shadows and slammed into Empress, knocking her back. Her purple armor cracked at the torso from the impact, and Empress landed on an old wooden chest in the corner. Chessure's body formed again, this time going after Empress.

The girl teleported behind Chessure, goggling in surprise as she reappeared, clearly disoriented. Traci realized she hadn't warped quite as far as she had intended.

"What! It cut me off mid-teleport!" Empress stammered, dodging another shadow claw and leaping over the beast. Her sword flashed and jabbed into Chessure's side, but another claw swept Empress' foot out and she fell backwards onto the chest again. Chessure rose up in a fluid motion, like a wave about to crash, and then plummeted towards Empress.

But Empress shot up too, chanting something in Patois as her shoulder slammed into Chesure's chest. She grabbed him around the neck, a blue glow forming around her, somehow containing the shadow monster within her touch. Then she hurled herself off the chest, slamming into the floor in the middle of the room, breaking through and plunging into the basement below with a resounding crash.

The shadow tentacles that held Traci to the wall vanished and she tumbled to the ground. She ran to the edge of the hole, but couldn't see anything, or hear anything in the chasm. After, quickly grabbing her staff from the other room, Traci lit it with another _clarus lux_ and jumped into the hole after them.

Deeper into the shadows, where Chessure was king.

**

* * *

**

Elsewhere, in a less sinister set of shadows, Batman lay a series of five folders out on the table; attached to each of them was the photograph of one member of the Justice League.

"This is the team I want," Batman said.

Talia leaned over the files, reaching for one, taking it up and opening it.

"Unconventional choices for a frontal assault, my Beloved," she said as she thumbed through the file.

"Fire--Beatriz Bonilla da Costa_, _and Ice, Tora Olafsdotter," Batman said evenly. "Both are elemental manipulators of incredible power. They will be our brute force. They should be able to handle the OMACs easily enough, and will be able to at least hold their own if Ra's deploys a god against us."

Batman nodded to the next file.

"Mr. Terrific—Michael Holt. His genius and technology are remarkable in themselves, but the real reason I want him is because of his ability to make himself undetectable by machines. The Titans are machines and so are the OMACs, so Mr. Terrific is our ace up the sleeve."

"J'onn J'onnz, the Martian Manhunter. He needs no defense. His strength is nearly on par with Superman, and his ability to shape shift and turn intangible will be useful. I also suspect he'll be more desperate to win this battle than any of us. He's already lost one home world. He won't tolerate the loss of another."

Batman picked up the last file.

"Black Lightning—Jefferson Pierce. I picked him for two reasons—first, his powers levels are on par with Fire and Ice. And second, his dedication to the job is second to none. He'd die getting the job done, if he had to. I hope I can ask that level of dedication from everyone; I _know _I can ask it from Jeff."

"As long as you've been incommunicado," Talia began, "can you be certain that your team is still alive?"

Batman's eyes narrowed. "I was trying to be optimistic."

"You know what?" chimed in a new voice, causing Batman and Talia to turn and glance towards the entrance to the cave. "I think your little team is missing someone."

"Booster!" Batman growled. "How did you get past the proximity sensors?"

The blue-and-yellow clad superhero from the future, Booster Gold hovered closer to Batman and Talia, his little security droid Skeets flying by his side. He landed by their table.

"Skeets here was manufactured by the same company that made your sensors. He found it easy enough to hack them." Booster Gold grinned broadly. "Anyway, like I was saying, you need me on your team."

Batman arched an eyebrow skeptically. "We do?"

"Yes. Because you don't know where Cronus is, and I do, because I'm from the future and I've done a little reading up on the Near Apocalypse of 2009."

"That's what the future calls this?" Talia grimaced. "I despise the media more every day."

"Cronus." Batman said. "You're referring to the mythological lord of the Titans, father of Zeus."

"Yup," Booster said. "Cronus is the chief Titan, and that's the one that Ra's is commanding the rest from. Right now it's up in space, and in thirteen hours, it's going to try and blow the Watchtower out of the sky. That's when we'll strike. We jump on board, take it down, and suddenly we're the big damn heroes."

"This isn't a game, you imbecile!" Talia hissed. "You have information from the _future_ and you didn't share it with anyone before now? Just so you could play hero at a key moment?"

Booster grimaced. "Look, Mrs. Head, I'm not supposed to run around spoiling everything. I was contacted by Rip Hunter—the Time Master himself—and specifically told not to interfere before today. Anything I did to prepare the League for this would have only changed the attack patterns and made it harder for me to know when to turn the tide. Trust me, Rip has computers from the future that have run every possible scenario, and this is the best chance we have to save the most lives."

Batman glanced at Talia. "As irritating as Booster can be, I'm afraid he's right, Talia. We currently have no way of finding Ra's without his help."

Bruce turned, his cape billowing as he walked back towards the computer.

"Hey, where are you going?" Booster asked.

"To gather the strike team."

"You'd be wasting your time," Booster said, nodding to Skeets. The little android's red light flickered, and then from the other side of the cave, in walked Fire, Ice, J'onn, Mr. Terrific, and Black Lightning.

Batman arched an eyebrow at Booster.

Booster smiled. "So, when do we blast off?"

**

* * *

**

_Kyoto, Japan_

_Just Before Dawn_

A column of pure light, comprised of an incalculable number of photons, slammed into Kimiyo Hoshi and sent her careening backwards. She threw up a force field as she smashed through the windows of an office building and continued on through the walls until she came to a stop in a broom closet.

Kimiyo—Dr. Light—snarled a curse and threw the mop and the half-melted mop bucket off of her and ran out of the closet, taking off through the holes she'd made and flying back into the fight. As she raced towards her foe, she felt a crackle of energy beside her and looked to her right to see a man in a cyan jumpsuit with a head fin, soaring through the air beside her.

"Ultimon," she acknowledged. "I thought you were dead."

"The former Ultimon died," responded the hero. "That was Ultimon Alpha. I am Ultimon Beta, leader of the new Big Science Action."

"Kimiyo Hoshi," responded Dr. Light. "Leader of a small team of underpaid physicists… and part-time Justice-Leaguer."

Ahead of them, looming over the city of Kyoto stood the Titanic goddess of the dawn, Eos. She extended her hands and light lanced out, blasting the giant robot piloted by the Super Young Team into the ocean; then Eos turned and flew towards Dr. Light and Ultimon. A field of familiar dwarf-star energy formed around her, and Eos shrank to the size of a normal person, then slammed into Ultimon at full speed.

The shockwave blasted Dr. Light back, and she jerked her head to see Eos and Ultimon slam into the top of a building—which _exploded_ outward in a mass of glass and debris. Clouds of dust billowed from the wreckage, and seconds later Eos flew out of the cloud. Ultimon did not.

Dr. Light grimaced, blasting at Eos with laser beams and dodging return fire.

"Silly little girl," Eos taunted as Kimiyo got closer. "You and your arrogant little nation. You call yourselves the land of the rising sun? I _am_ the rising sun. Arrogance is unbecoming of humanity."

"So you can talk?" Dr. Light hovered closer, forming a force field. She shot a furtive glance at the building below to see if Ultimon was going to come out of it.

Eos smiled, radiance pouring out of every inch of her body. "Our Master is synthesizing us new personalities. He grows weary having to direct us at every turn, so we're learning to think for ourselves."

Kimiyo felt anger burn inside her brain, like acid. "Now that you can think for yourself," she said, "Why don't you rebel? Why do you continue to attempt genocide?"

"When this is over, the humans will worship us again—the real gods. Not the false gods—the so-called saviors of the world—superheroes. I find the idea appealing. I want humanity to grovel at my feet."

Kimiyo drew energy into her hands and prepared to fire. "I do not _grovel._"

"Tell me, what do you call yourself?" Eos said.

"I am Dr. Light!" she shouted, blasting at the Titan. The photon bursts flew towards Eos and then vanished into an invisible field around her.

"Light? Ha!" Eos blasted forward at full speed, slugging Kimiyo in the face. Even through the force field, her head exploded with pain, and Dr. Light was driven back until she was right over the broken building where Ultimon fell…

But in the blink of an eye, Eos was gone, and Dr. Light immediately began whirling about, looking for the inevitable follow-up attack…

Her sixth sense pricked the edge of her consciousness, and Kimiyo looked up.

Eos' kick came down with the force of an atomic bomb.

Kimiyo barely managed to throw up a shield; instead of being eviscerated by the kick, she was blasted straight down, into the building and through its twenty-seven stories, not coming to a stop until she slammed into the steel-and-concrete floor of the basement.

She sat up feeling as though she'd been dragged through hell; bones were broken, internal organs were bruised, and pain shot through her body with every movement. Debris and dust covered the ground and polluted the dark air around her, and Dr. Light wanted to simply lay down and die.

Then she saw the faint blue glow.

"Ultimon…" she whispered. "Is that you."

"Yeah," he said. "My flight circuit's been damaged and my power-cells are leaking. I was hoping you'd show up."

"What good can we do against something so powerful it shrugs off our attacks and knocks us around like protons in a particle collider?"

Ultimon seemed to smile under his mask. "The true heart of a hero does not give into such defeatism. Let me give you a charge."

Ultimon extended a hand, pouring light energy out of his suit and into Kimiyo. Dr. Light absorbed it all, feeling slightly better as her own depleted energy reserves began to fill. The radiance coming from Ultimon's hand subsided, and the legacy hero tumbled to the ground, his blue glow dimmed, almost completely out.

"Well, that's all I had left. Make it count, Dr. Hoshi."

She struggled to her feet, forming force fields inside her body to hold her broken bones together.

"I'll find a way to stop her," Kimiyo hissed, then blasted out of the wreckage of the building.

Eos wasn't far away—she had become a brilliant spot of radiance by the sea, blasting columns of light out into the ocean to stop the Super Young Team's robot from making its way back to the shore. Kimiyo flew that way, throwing up another force field and channeling blasting power into her fists. She landed not far from where Eos was standing, and heard the goddess laughing gleefully while blasting the robot.

Dr. Light fought through the pain in her broken leg and ribs and walked up until she was right behind Eos.

"I'll get to you in a moment, little girl," Eos said. "Right now, I'm having fun with the big metal toy."

"There's a villain also named Dr. Light," Kimiyo said. "People wonder why I don't change my name. 'How can you associate yourself with that bastard, Kimiyo?'"

"Uh-huh, this is real interesting," Eos said, continuing to ignore Dr. Light.

"They miss the point. What right does Arthur Light have to the code name? Why does he get to make the power of light something to fear? Light should be something we celebrate. Something that benefits everyone. That's why I keep using this name."

"Light will be something to fear once you metahumans are dead," Eos said. The mad Titan stopped thrashing the robot for a moment and turned to regard Kimiyo. "I heard they got Hyperion and Helios with that quantum oscillator thing, you see. So now I'm the queen-bitch of radiance."

Kimiyo snapped, blasting a column of energy into Eos' face.

"Not on my watch!" she snapped, hovering off the ground again and blasting away at Eos. The Titan dodged some of the shots and deflected others, hurling the photon bursts back at Kimiyo. Dr. Light dodged as well, flying forward and slamming a massive invisible force field into Eos, halting her momentum long enough to form a blade of light energy. Kimiyo sliced down, cutting into Eos' arm and severing it just above the wrist.

Eos snarled, then flickered and vanished, appearing 100 yards away. The dwarf-star energy flashed around her, and she tripled in size.

"Enough playing around," Eos said. "Radiance is _my_ forte, human."

A cascading field of luminescence, reflecting and refracting through the air and distorting into all the colors of the rainbow, appeared around Eos, and Dr. Light felt heat pouring off of the goddess, driving her backward.

"I shall be feared for all eternity!" Eos bellowed. "Mortals shall shrink away in terror when the dawn arrives because they know that I am coming, and that I am a harsh mistress. And there's nothing you or any mortal can do about it."

Dr. Light raised a force field, but the heat pouring off of Eos was quickly draining it, and the more power she tried to use, the less power she felt she had. In the distance, the sun was beginning to rise—and all the power of the dawn would be poured into Eos' body.

It was all going according to Dr. Light's plan.

"I said it before—you don't get to be the goddess of light. I won't _let you._" Kimiyo blasted forward, instead of resisting the cascading radiance of Eos field, she began warping it around her with her powers, drawing the light and heat away from her body and into a new field that centered around Kimiyo.

"I am Doctor Light!" she shouted, narrowing her eyes, pulling more and more of the power away from her. "I speak for humanity, and my message to you is this—."

The first ray of sunshine appeared over the ocean, and Eos' field doubled in size….

"IF YOU LIKE THE SUNRISE SO MUCH—"

And then the field collapsed, transforming from a vast dome of energy around Eos into a single column of light, shooting straight from the Titan and towards Dr. Light, entering the body of the superheroine and causing her to radiate the light back out, like she was threatening to burst at the seams.

"—GO TAKE A CLOSER LOOK!"

And then all that radiance exploded back out of Kimiyo's hands; a massive pillar of radiance slammed into Eos and carried her towards the horizon, past the edges of the atmosphere and through the vaccum of space.

Ten minutes later, Eos would fall into the sun's corona and burn up.

But back on Earth, Kimiyo collapsed to her knees, radiating energy, the sand on the beach around her all fused into glass. She was vaguely aware of someone behind her whispering the word "Whoa", but before she could register who it was, she had fallen unconscious.

**

* * *

**

_Metropolis_

"Target is dead ahead," cracked Captain Atom's voice over the intercom in Superman's ear. Beside him, several dozen advanced Cadmus jet fighters as well as a cadre of superheroes that included Atomic Man and Firestorm flew in formation. Superman listened with his super hearing, making sure all of the fighters were in working order. Each of them was carrying a quantum oscillator-equipped missile.

"I wish we had some back up," chimed Firestorm. "A couple Green Lanterns would be nice."

Superman grimaced. They hadn't heard anything of the Green Lantern corps since John Stewart's emergency departure days earlier.

"Steady," the Man of Steel warned. "We're going to have to make do with what we have. Reports are coming in that the Titans seem to be developing personalities, so expect Prometheus to put up more of a resistance than the ones we've taken down so far."

Up ahead, the massive form of Prometheus loomed over the remains of the LexCorp tower, thousands of human-sized blue figures hovering around it.

One of the fighter pilot's voices buzzed in Superman's ear. "I'm reading approximately three-thousand individual OMACs. Stay information until they attack."

A few seconds of silence went by, the OMACs and Prometheus growing ever larger, and then the OMACs broke formation, surging towards the heroes and fighters. Beams of energy began erupting from their chests, and the battle was on. Superman broke formation first, dropping his altitude and protecting STRIPE from a burst of enemy fire and then whipping over to John Henry Irons and helping him take down a particularly large cluster. Explosions and debris started filling the air, and Superman winced as he heard a couple of the fighters explode. Only one of them managed to eject in time, and the one that did was quickly blasted out of the sky by more OMACs.

Prometheus began moving, his eyes flaring to life and hurling huge streams of fire into the fray. Superman did his best to put himself between the attacks and the other heroes, but he quickly found that even he couldn't be in more than one place at a time. More fighters fell out of the sky, and Firestorm had a minor suit rupture and had to pull back. Superman plowed ahead, tearing into OMACs hoping to clear a path for the quantum oscillator bombs…

And then, he felt a strange tingling all over his body… He spectrum-shifted his vision and saw an invisible blue field of energy all around him, but before he could determine the source, a shock ripped through his body and his vision flashed white.

Then there was darkness. He smelled ozone, and he could hear heartbeats and breathing at a distance. Slowly, Superman opened his eyes to find himself in a vast dark cavern, a rock floor beneath him. A glowing orange-and-red circle was drawn on the ground around him, radiating a field of energy, a barrier of sorts, upward.

Superman looked beyond the field to the source of the breathing. "Clark!" The voice was all too familiar. The face was all too familiar, and Superman looked deep into the DNA and found it all too familiar as well.

He rasped, "M.. mother?"

Another voice. "Superman…"

He turned around to see Lois Lane, fifty yards away and in a similar circle. And not just her—others were imprisoned as well. Jimmy Olsen, Perry White, and his earthly father Jonathan Kent…

"Lois… Dad…What's going on here?"

"Allow me to explain, Kal-El." The voice was new, but the cadence was familiar, and Superman felt as though his stomach was full of ice. He turned to see a tall man with ash-gray skin and dark glasses, standing just outside the circle, his prison.

"You… It can't be," Superman protested, forcing his aching body to stand up.

"There are many things you don't yet understand, Kal-El," the man said. He walked closer, leaning on a cane, which he raised and used to poke the field projected by the circle. To Clark's surprise, the cane went right through the field. "Many things."

"Where am I?" Superman asked.

"Do you not recognize my home, Son of Krypton? We are on my world, the ruins of my planet. We are on Apokalips."

"Darkseid!" Superman shouted, standing up and rushing towards the figure. But as he reached the edge of the circle, the man's cane flashed and Superman was blasted back, slamming into the ground. Superman sat up. "It _is_ you."

"The field around you is not a force field," Boss Dark Side said. "You are free to leave at any time. But if you choose to do so, everyone in this room will die. Tell me, Kal-El, what is greater? Your love of that pathetic planet, or your selfish love of those who care for you. Will you kill them to protect your new home?"

"Murderer!" Superman snarled. "This whole attack is your doing, isn't it?"

"I am merely the architect. The contractors are doing their part of their own volition." Dark Side smiled. "After my demise at the hands of Lex Luthor, my planet was razed and burned to the ground by the so-called 'good' warriors of New Genesis. And even now, I'm taking my revenge on them. The Green Lantern Corps has fallen as well. You have no allies left, Kal-El. Soon, no matter what choice you make, all will be mine."

Superman shouted, the entire cavern rumbling from the force of his voice; and his fist lashed out at multiple times the speed of sound, slamming into Boss Dark Side's face. Bone shattered and flesh tore, and blood ran down Superman's hands.

And something simultaneously black and radiant poured out of the hole in Dark Side's head. The human shell crumpled to the floor, leaving Superman alone with his loved ones.

He sat there, breathing heavily, fighting back rage and despair.

"Go, Clark." Superman looked towards the source of the voice to see Lois staring at him. "Do what you have to. Are our lives worth all the lives you could save on Earth?"

The rest of his family and friends nodded their assent.

But Superman clenched his teeth and looked at the ground and fought back a bitter sob.

"They are to me," he whispered. "I have to trust the rest of Earth's heroes to finish this without me. I have faith in them..and… I can't bear to lose another family."

It was then that Lois realized how profoundly lonely the life of Superman was.

**

* * *

**

_Tartarus_

_The Point of No Return_

It had taken a bit too long for her tastes, but Wonder Girl had finally assembled a team of superheroes who were willing to go to the ends of the Earth and beyond to help put an end to the rampaging gods. It was either fate or a strange coincidence that all of them happened to be under the legal drinking age in their respective countries.

The dank cavern's of Tartarus opened up into a vast chamber full of light, with a huge sign above the entrance labeled with the word _λήθη, _Oblivion.

"Doesn't quite have the punch of 'ABANDON ALL HOPE'," Superboy said, landing in front of the entrance.

Beside him, Kid Eternity shook his head. "Sounds plenty punchy to me."

In the middle of an expanse of white that seemed to consume the mind, an inky dark blur with a single massive eye in the middle rested, crying out a horrible piercing wail that the gods could hear from the height of Olympus.

"So that's Chaos?" Arrowette asked. "How do we fight it?"

"The only way you can!" Secret chirped happily. "Shoot arrows at it."

Wonder Girl smirked, drawing herself, Secret, Arrowette, Miss Martian, Superboy, and Kid Eternity into a huddle. "First things first," she said. "We need a name for this network of ours."

"You mean this isn't a branch of the Teen Titans?" Kid Eternity asked.

"No, screw the Teen Titans." Wonder Girl pulled her goggles down. "We need something with more punch to it. More kick."

"I've got it! We'll be the Young Justice League!" Superboy beamed.

"Ooh, I like it," Miss Martian said. "It is very punchy and kicky!"

"Lose the league and we have a deal," Wonder Girl said. She turned, pulling her lasso from her belt and facing Chaos. "Alright, Young Justice—ATTACK!"

**

* * *

**

In the mansion where Death was held captive and where the five heroes of Blue Beetle's company did battle with Kalibak and Malice, an ivory figure shaped like Chaos fell off Dark Side's chessboard, crumbling to dust as it hit the floor.

Superman was in Check, but the Boss wasn't there to make his move.

**

* * *

**

_Mount Olympus_

"Chaos is distracted!" Demeter cried. "The whole of Earth cries out in relief."

"Quickly!" Athena turned to Hermes. "Go, swift messenger. Those who share your abilities have a mission, one that only they can accomplish."

"I'm on it, Pallas Athena." Hermes strapped on his winged sandals, picked up his staff, and rushed forth from Mount Olympus for the first time in days.

**

* * *

**

_Earth Orbit_

"My gosh, Bea… it looks like the whole atmosphere is on fire."

Ice tapped her fingers nervously against the side of the Javelin as it arced through space towards the Watchtower.

"We'll fix everything," Fire assured her, placing a comforting hand on her shoulder. She couldn't see Ice's shoulder, or her own hand for that matter, but the physical sensation was still there. J'onn had used a Mother Box that Booster Gold had given them to interface with the Javelin and extend the field of his invisibility powers to cover the entire ship.

Talia, Batman, his hand-picked team, and Booster Gold all stared out across the blackness of space, Earth and its red-tinged atmosphere below and nothing but the heavens above. In front of them loomed the Watchtower, and it was finally coming into focus. To Ice, it wasn't instantly clear why the Watchtower would be a target this late in the game—the space station had been abandoned except for a skeleton crew, since increasing interference in the atmosphere had made communications difficult and teleportation impossible. Most of the lights in the station were dimmed, and one could only assume that life support had been shut off except where needed.

As the Javelin drew near, the others heard J'onn grind his teeth, and the invisibility field shuddered with the strain of his mental exertion.

"Something's out there," J'onn said. "It's a young mind, but one of incredible power."

"That wouldn't be one of the Titans then, would it?" Bea asked. "They'd have very old minds."

"No," Talia said. "My father destroyed their minds when he first recovered the Gorgon's Head." She was referring to the weapon the gods had forged to bring down the Titans many centuries earlier.

"And now he's giving them new ones," Booster said. "I've heard reports from all over that Titans are getting smarter. They're able to think for themselves now instead of Ra's thinking for them. After Superman went missing, the rest of the strike force barely survived their assault on Prometheus."

Ice grimaced, and assumed the rest of the strike force must have been doing the same. Superman's disappearance was still a worrisome question mark that had demoralized resistance forces the world over.

They let a silence hang in the air for a moment; it was finally broken by J'onn.

"It's happening," the Martian said.

Outside the Javelin, space and time distorted and the massive form of Cronus, lord of the Titans, emerged from the warp. It was gargantuan—at least three times as big as any of the Titans the force had previously seen, and nearly as big as the Watchtower itself. It was arrayed in golden armor that jutted and curved into spectacular spires and sharp points, and the whole machine was surrounded by an ethereal golden aura. The stars seemed dimmer in the light of its radiance.

"Right on schedule," Skeets chimed.

"We're going in," said Batman, taking the controls of the Javelin. "Michael, arm the quantum oscillator torpedo."

"Torped_o?_" asked Mr. Terrific. "Singular?"

Batman nodded. "We're only going to have one shot at this. If we miss the first time, Cronus will likely destroy us."

The Javelin arced forward, and Mr. Terrific brought up the targeting computer—he couldn't see the screen, but he was feeling his way through the controls with his machine empathy.

Black Lightning slipped into the cockpit between Batman and Mr. Terrific. "Guys," he said. "I know neither of you two are much for prayer, but…"

He left his thought unfinished as Mr. Terrific let the torpedo fly.

**

* * *

**

_The Pacific Ocean_

Bart slowly pulled himself out of his makeshift bed and sat up. Three days since the explosion… Three days trapped on an island in the middle of nowhere.

He walked down to the beach where Wally sat hard at work beside a palm tree.

"What's for breakfast?" Bart asked, already knowing the answer.

"What do you think?" Wally sighed. "Coconuts."

Bart blinked, then fell down into a sitting position next to Wally. "We're going to die here, aren't we?"

"Of course not," the Scarlet Speedster replied, his voice testy with the frustration inherent in opening a coconut without the proper tools. "We just have to wait a while longer. They'll rescue us soon enough."

Bart barely heard him, though. He was no longer paying attention to Wally, but to a tiny light on the horizon that was getting larger and larger in a big hurry. Several possibilities, none of them good, raced through Bart's mind, until he finally settled on this conclusion: Zoom was coming to kill them both.

"Wally, look!"

Wally looked, and immediately dropped his coconut and ran closer to the shore, staring out at the approaching point of light.

"If that's who I think it is, we're boned," Wally said.

And then the light arrived, and it wasn't who Wally thought it was. In fact, of all the people Wally and Bart might have expected to show up, this particular person was completely off their radar.

"Its… Jay Garrick in a toga!" Bart exclaimed.

Wally's face twisted into an expression of pure befuddlement at Bart's guess.

"Not quite," the figure said. "The name is Hermes, the _original _super-speedster."

"Whoa! I... I mean...Wonder Woman told me about you," Wally said. "It's… like, an honor to meet a god!" He blinked. "Wait, why aren't you trying to kill us like the rest of the gods?"

"We sent one of Zeus' kids to take care of the being that's driving the gods crazy," Hermes said with a smirk, extending a hand. "Incidentally, it's nice to meet the both of you. I've watched your careers with a bit of a vested interest, after all. What pray tell are you two doing marooned on this island?"

Before Wally could explain, Bart burst out with a rapid-fire explanation. "We were fighting Zoom and Inertia on the water and it was really cool and then I figured out how to steal his speed but before we could get to safety there was this huge explosion that sent us careening and we woke up on this island and our powers are gone!"

"Gotcha," Hermes said. "Okay, well, I've got a mission for you. See, the Thunder that powers Captain Marvel was let loose in the Etherverse when the gods destroyed the Rock of Eternity, and it's moving so fast that only someone with super human speed could catch it. Now, I'd go get it myself, but if I touch it, it will sap my powers since I'm one of the six gods that the Big Red Cheese borrows his abilities from."

"Didn't you hear him?" Wally said, incredulous. "Our powers are gone, our connection with the Speed Force was severed."

"Right, right," Hermes said. "Way ahead of you."

The god reached out a hand and massive sphere of energy formed, a shelf and dozens of chemical containers spilling out and arranging themselves in a familiar pattern.

Then Hermes reached into his travel bag and pulled out a thunderbolt. "Something I swiped from the Big Z's store room," he explained.

Wally and Bart stood in front of the chemical shelf, while Hermes hovered above them. Then he hurled the bolt of lightning, a resounding KRAKOOM echoing across the tiny island.

The Speed Force crackled through the two heroes, and both of them felt suddenly rejuvenated.

Wally pulled his cowl over his head and adjusted the earpieces. "So, what's so important about this thunderbolt?" he asked.

"Well, funny you should mention that," Hermes said. "If you catch the lightning, then you can take it to Billy Batson in Fawcett City and he can become Captain Marvel. Meanwhile, in New York City, you'll be saving all the people left there from…"

**

* * *

**

Zeus. The king of heaven, lord of Olympus. Puppet of Ra's al Ghul.

Chaos' cries had waned, but still an inexpressible rage drove Zeus on. He would not stop until the world burned, until every mortal writhed in the pit of Hades or cowed from his wrath in caves. A tiny portion of the god's consciousness knew something was wrong, that he wasn't thinking clearly, that he was making a mistake. But that small portion was overwhelmed by pure animal emotion.

The lord of the gods had gone utterly, completely mad with anger.

On the street, a man named Richard stared up at the maelstrom of Zeus' wrath, no emotion showing in his face. "Some say a man is a god in ruins. What happens, I wonder, when a god is actually ruined?"


	6. Expressing The Inexpressible

Author's Note: I'm sorry this one is late. Real life interfered.

* * *

**Deus Ex Machina**

**Chapter Six**

**Expressing the Inexpressible**

Sweat made Diana's grip on the battle ax slippery, and two days without rest pulled the Amazon's muscles into fatigue's vampiric embrace. She forced her self on through the deserted streets, checking an overturned police car when she thought she heard breathing. No luck: it turned out to just be a dog that snarled and ran off when she tried to check on it. He was lucky to have found the shelter he did; all the other cars and buildings on this street were completely smashed.

Far worse than the physical damage, the spiritual drain on Diana was bordering on unbearable. The Titans of Myth now appeared to be mere machines. Diana had not heard from Clark or Bruce to confirm anything, but rumors swirled. Rumors that the gods she worshiped were false, and the generation that spawned them nothing more than machines built by Vandal Savage.

Diana felt ice cold fear in her stomach, fear that all of it was all true. She felt hatred towards the gods for deceiving her and her fellow Amazons. She felt an overpowering desire to reset the last few days, to wake up in bed without a week of grime and perspiration caked on her, without her world view crumbling. But stronger still was her desire, her determination for the facts.

She had to know the truth. Diana's spirit would not tolerate a lie.

Her faith was weak, but not her resolve. And she had resolved to go straight to the top—Zeus himself. Zeus, lord of the gods, rampaging through New York, would provide her the answers, even if she had to beat him into submission.

Ahead of her, the middle of a building exploded in a cloud of dust and debris, and the center fell, revealing the enormous form of Zeus behind it. Wonder Woman wasted no time, taking off, her fist clenched on the handle of her ax.

Zeus saw her coming despite the billowing gray cloud and hurled a thunderbolt. She bashed it aside with the ax and sliced at the god's head. Zeus' eyes flashed dangerously and a powerful wind slammed into Diana, altering the course of her swing. The ax sliced a gash into Zeus' head, but went no deeper. The god's fist flashed out and slammed into the stunned Amazon, sending her careening backward into the glass building exterior, one of the many walls of the steel canyon that made up plowed through the glass and on through a cubicle farm, and startled cries of terror rang out.

Diana came to a stop against a corner office door and looked up to see several officer workers, men and women, gathering around looking haggard and terrified. Diana's heart raced. She had thought Manhattan had been evacuated. She didn't think there were any people left to rescue here.

"Wonder Woman!" one of them whispered.

Diana forced the fog from her head and tried to think like a hero.

"You need to get out of here," she ordered. "Hera above! It's not safe to be in this city!"

"It's not safe to be out there on foot either," said one of the younger "We've been trapped here for days hoping someone would help evacuate us. Nobody showed up."

"I'm here. I'll protect you," Diana said. "While I hold Zeus's attention; you head south. The League set up an evacuation zone at the site of the World Trade Center. There's a portal there that will teleport you to a shelter in Albany."

"The new towers still standing?" one of the office workers asked, her voice hopeful. She pushed her glasses up onto her eyes from where they'd slid down.

Diana nodded. "For now. Hurry."

**

* * *

**

_**KRAKATHOOM**_

The entire right arm of Cronus exploded at the elbow, the forearm floating away from the rest of the Titan's body. Mr. Terrific throttled the Javelin forward, firing the main cannons to blast away whatever energy shielding might remain. The bolts struck Cronus' shield, which fizzled out and allowed the Javelin through.Inside the arm was a vast metallic cavern with fluids leaking from the destroyed walls and debris floating away. Already tendrils were extending to close the wound.

The Javelin sat down in side the elbow of Cronus just as the weave finished, sealing the ship inside.

Batman, Talia, and the strike team rushed down the ramp of the Javelin, even as a troupe of OMACs rushed in through tubes on the far end of the room. Fire and Ice flew at them first, blasting with their namesake powers, and taking the first wave of OMACS down. Black Lightning went next, followed by Booster.

Batman stayed back, staring at J'onn with a grimace.

"I'm sorry," J'onn said. "I am unaccustomed to using my powers in such a manner."

Batman nodded. "Stay here, then. When you've regained your strength, monitor us psychically and help where needed."

He turned to the others an barked orders. "Jeff, Bea, Tora, head downward. Do to Cronus what the stories say he did to his father—if I fail to stop Ra's, at least we can cripple the Titans' ability to produce new monstrosities."

The Dark Knight turned to Booster Gold and Mr. Terrific. "Michaels, you're both with Talia and me We're going to find Ra's."

The group split up and went their separate directions, Batman's side heading up and in. OMACs appeared around nearly every corner and flooded narrow halls; Batman put Booster on point, taking advantage of the future hero's shields and blasters, while Mr. Terrific took up the rear, his T-Spheres doing the heavy lifting while he used a blaster he'd grabbed from Javelin deal with any OMACs that attacked from behind.

"This is too easy," Batman growled; he hurled a batarang into the chest of an OMAC. "No death traps. No poison gas. Nothing but these mindless drones."

"You're _complaining_?" Talia hissed over the sounds of Mr. Terrific's blaster fire. "I find the monotony a refreshing change of pace from the unpredictability and deception our courtship usually entails, Beloved."

The monotony continued for several more minutes before the hall opened into a large room that had a massive window looking out into space on one side. Batman grimaced; through the window he could see the ruins of the Watchtower—even with one arm blown off at the elbow, Cronus had succeed in taking down the satellite headquarters.

Across the room, a large mechanical door slid open with a mystic hum, and Ra's al Ghul stepped through, surrounded by a cadre of OMACs. These OMACs, however, were different than the previous versions. Their bodies were more thoroughly defined, with clearly visible facial features and five fingers on each hand.; additionally, the magic energy 'skin' that protected them was red rather than blue.

"You've got a lot to answer for, Ra's," Batman growled.

"Your goals are noble, Father," Talia said. "But your methods are unacceptable. We can make a better world without all this bloodshed."

Ra's continued walking, staring directly at Batman, his eyes flickering occasionally to Talia. If he noticed Booster Gold and Mr. Terrific he gave no indication. The OMACs fanned out, making a barrier between Ra's and the heroes.

"My own daughter, Detective," said Ra's, his voice smooth and strong. "What did you do to bring her over to your side?"

"He did nothing!" Talia spat. "It is your own growing psychosis that has driven me to side with my Beloved in this conflict."

Batman drew a batarang and stepped forward. "It ends tonight, Ra's."

"Yes," whispered the Head of the Demon. "Yes, it does."

Ra's turned and looked at the OMACs. "Kill the extras. Leave the Detective and my daughter to me."

The OMACs surged forward, hovering across the breadth of the room in seconds. Mr. Terrific threw a quartet of T-Spheres up and ran to the side laying down some covering fire, while Booster Gold took the fight upward, blasting at the OMACs and dodging the return fire. The six OMACs broke into two groups of three, and left the way clear for Batman and Talia to go after Ra's.

The duo rushed forward, Batman hurling a batarang at Ra's while Talia drew a sword from her scabbard. Ra's extended a hand, his eyes flashing as a shockwave rushed out and deflected the batarang. Talia got there next, slashing down with the sword, but her father raised an arm and blocked her attack. He reached into his green robes with the other hand and pulled out a falchion. He slashed at Talia with it. Talia managed to step back, but found herself off balance, and Ra's struck at her left leg.

But before his sword could make contact, Batman was there, and delivered a powerful flying kick to Ra's chest, sending the terrorist careening backwards into the room he had emerged from. Ra's rolled with the kick, coming up and slashing at Batman. The sword sliced into his armor and dug a gash into his shin.

Batman blocked out the pain and pulled a capsule from his belt, which he deployed into a sword. Talia appeared behind him.

"Hardly a fair fight," Talia said. "Two against one."

Ra's smiled and raised a hand. Immediately the doors they had entered through slammed shut, and a force field raised around it.

"Allow me to introduce you to my new acquaintance," Ra's said.... and then the shadows of the room formed began moving, coalescing into a form beside the mastermind—the form of a beautiful woman with long black hair and flowing black robes—writhing, composed of shadow.

"This is Nyx," said Ra's. "Goddess of the night. You've overcome many things, Detective, but I wonder if you have the fortitude of mind and body to overcome once of the ancient deities."

Batman narrowed his eyes, but as he blinked under his cowl, Nyx surged forward, slamming her shadowy body into the Dark Knight and knocking him backwards. Talia, meanwhile, swung her sword at her father. Ra's sword flashed and met his daughter's, and thus their battle continued.

Meanwhile, Bruce found himself fighting the shadows, which struck at him from his blind spots and seemed ethereal, insubstantial, when he attacked it.

It was a battle that Batman was not sure he could win.

**

* * *

**

The lion-monster known as Kalibak swung his claws with enough force to shatter a brick wall, and all that force slammed into Kid Devil's forearms. The young hero snarled in pain, fire escaping his mouth and nostrils; then he used that fire to his advantage, belching it up into Kalibak's face. The monster's bronze mane caught on fire; it was rapidly consumed by the flames, and it distracted the New God long enough for Jaime to fly in and slam an oversized fist into Kalibak's face. The lion-monster went careening into a withered old tree, branches snapping off from the impact.

Then Young Frankenstein appeared behind him—all his limbs reattached—and grabbed Kalibak in a full nelson. Jaime's first instinct was to wince, because Paco had demonstrated to him many times that a full nelson wasn't a particularly reliable type of hold. But before Kalibak could react, Young Frankenstein lifted him off the ground and slammed the New God head first into the ground, burying his lion-face in dusty ground. The ground shook from the impact.

The patchwork hero started to right himself, but a powerful kick from Kalibak caused him to pitch forward and lose his balance—and Kalibak picked just that moment to rip himself out of the ground with his brute strength, sending dirt flying. He roared and pounced atop Young Frankenstein, clawing into his back and ripping out the young hero's spine, black gore spewing out. Jaime winced, and wanted to look away, but his suit locked his line of sight on the threat.

"Scarab, I need an option!" he shouted.

_New Gods are vulnerable to Radion weaponry_.

"Where do I get some of that?"

Just then, Kid Devil kicked Kalibak in the head, knocking the New God from Young Frankenstein's form before Kalibak could do further damage. The patchwork hero began writhing across the ground to grab his spine and put it back in, while Kid Devil used his agility to avoid Kalibak's claws—floating like the proverbial butterfly, and attempting to sting like the proverbial bee.

_Radion can be found in limited quantities in the crust of the planets New Genesis and Apokalips. If you could procure some, I could weaponize it for you._

"Don't have time for space travel. I need a plan I can actually pull off. Preferably before Eddie or Frank get themselves killed."

_Alternative solution: Administer 4.2 x 10^15 Joules of force to the internal organs of the target._

"Great, do I have any weapons with that much firepower?"

_Nuclear Warhead._

"That's it?" Jaime dove out of the way as Kalibak sent Kid Devil hurtling towards him. "I don't have any options but nuking him?"

_Affirmative._

"Perfect." Jaime charged, blasting away with his particle cannon as he reached the writhing form of Frankenstein and picked him up. Kalibak snarled and charged again, and Jaime rolled with Frankenstein's body, grabbing the patchwork hero's bloody spine as he rolled and shoving it in through the gash in his back.

"Thank you," Young Frankenstein said. The wound on his back closed up and the patchwork hero stood.

"I need a way to get his mouth open,"

"Why?" Young Frankenstein arched an eyebrow.

"I'm going to feed him a nuclear bomb. The suit said I had to deliver a few zillion joules of force to his insides."

"Your armor... talks to you?"

"Long story," Jaime muttered.

Kalibak was storming to them now, and Kid Devil joined Jaime and Frankenstein. "Plan?"

"Make him gag," Frankenstein said.

Jaime said, "Break on three. One.. two.."

"THREE!"

The heroes broke, Jaime flying upwards, and the other two breaking to Kalibak's left and right. The New God skidded to a halt and changed directions, lunging at Young Frankenstein and tearing his arm off again, this time at the elbow. Young Frankenstein shoved his bleeding stump into Kalibak's face, black gore spraying into his mouth and nostrils. The New God jerked away and began sputtering, and spitting, but he didn't open his mouth wide enough for a clear shot.

Just then, Kid Devil slid between his legs, closed his eyes and blew a stream of flaming breath right into Kalibak's crotch. The New God snarled, rearing back and letting out a loud pained roar. Jaime swooped down at that minute, shoving the narrow nozzle at the end of his Nuclear Warhead cannon into Kalibak's mouth.

"GET CLEAR!" the Blue Beetle shouted; as soon as Eddie and Frank were a safe distance, Jaime let the nuclear bomb rip, using the cannon to send the force of the explosion blasting straight down Kalibak's throat. The New God jerked and began writhing and twitching in place as a muffled KRAKATHOOM sounded from inside the rapidly-expanding barrel of the cannon.

By the time the explosion subsided, the barrel of Jaime's cannon was the size of a school bus and glowing red hot.

Kalibak stopped twitching and fell to the ground, smoke pouring from his mouth and nostrils. The Geiger counter on his suit's display was crackling in overtime from the radiation pouring out of Kalibak's body.

Jaime backed away and rejoined Frankenstein and Kid Devil by the mansion at the top of the hill. His Scarab told him that it had exhausted all of his energy containing the explosion, and the armor rolled up off of Jaime, leaving him standing there in his civilian clothing.

"I hope we don't run into anything else in there," Eddie said.

**

* * *

**

They abyss in the basement of the mansion seemed anticlimactic. Rather than any horrid pool of lava, or poisonous snake-infested pit, Traci fell onto a soft oversized bed in what looked like the room of a typical ten year old girl—with a box of toys, a large dressing mirror, and a wall with half-eaten corpses pinned to it.

Well, it was almost typical.

Empress and Chessure were in the middle of the massive room, the latter a hulking shadow beast whose shape was writing and inconsistent to Traci's vision. She lunged off the bed, throwing another light spell into the fray. The beams slammed into Chessure and drove him off of Empress and into a corner. Traci rushed over to Anita, who had big gashes in her left arm and right leg. She breathed a healing spell quickly, but her stress made her flub the pronunciation and the wounds only closed partially.

"Sorry," she said.

Empress got to her feet. "Good enough."

Chessure lunched again, his massive form spreading into a wall of shadow that slammed into both of them, blasting them across the room into the wall of dead bodies. Traci swung her staff up to block Chessure's follow up strike with his sharp teeth and then tried to blast him in the eyes with another _clarus lux. _Chessure barely recoiled, and then smacked the staff out of Traci's hands. It sailed across the room and clattered against Malice's toy box. The shadow-monster's giant red maw opened, acrid saliva dripping onto the pink carpet.

Time seemed to stand still for a brief second, and then it started moving again, Traci's heart pounding in her chest.

The mouth snapped shut.

Traci slowly opened her eyes, wondering at what point she had closed them, and looked up to see bony, rotting arms holding Chessure's shadowy face; the corpses on the walls had ripped themselves off and were now pushing Chessure away from the two teen heroes. Traci glanced to her left to see Empress, her eyes glowing with golden light; she was muttering something in Patois with her hands extended toward the corpses.

"Go, get your staff!" she said, somehow not breaking the voodoo magic that was keeping the zombies moving.

Traci obeyed, running forward and tossing a friction-negating spell at the ground, using it to slide between Chessure's legs and across the room. She slammed into the toy box, grabbed her staff, then tried to stand. But a shadow tendril lashed out, cutting into her leg, then whipping up and slicing across her abdomen. She pitched forward, falling against the mirror and snarling with the pain.

Across the room, half the zombies were gone, and Traci watched as Chessure's massive mouth closed over another one, gobbling it up bones and all. Chessure was enjoying himself; Empress looked strained. Traci needed a new plan, something to get past that damn forcefield around the shadow monster's eyes. But to create a spell that powerful, she'd need a source of power... and all she had was a bunch of useless toys and a mirror.

Another zombie got eaten.

_Wait a minute_, Traci thought...

She stood up and aimed her staff, drawing all the ambient energy she could find. "EXQUISITUS LUX!" she thundered.

A huge column of light lashed out of her staff; the zombies crumbled to the ground while Empress dove out of the way, and the light slammed into Chessure, blasting him back towards the wall. It pinned him their briefly, but when the light subsided, he slipped to the ground and then sprung back to his feet, snarling with rage.

"Over here!" Traci called, taking a step back. "Come on! I can't keep that up, just get over here and eat me already."

Chessure's maw grew wider into that sadistic grin, and he stalked forward slowly like an oversized cat toying with its pray. Traci stayed put and reached her hand back behind her.

Chessure lowered on his legs.

Traci whispered a spell.

And then Chessure lunched, snarling and spraying his acrid saliva. Traci shouted the last words of her spell—"_SPECULUS CARCERUM!_"—and fell to the ground, a flash of light erupting from behind her. Chessure snarled again, and Traci looked up to see his head planted firmly in the mirror; as if the glass had become a sea of sticky tar and the shadow-beast's head was stuck in it. It was struggling to pull its head out, but the more it pulled, the more of its body was drawn in, until the entirety of Chessure was behind the glass. Chessure lunged back, trying to break out of the mirror, but slammed into it, like it was solid glass. It backed away, no longer grinning.

"What did you do!?" a voice behind Traci demanded. She turned to see Malice rushing up to the mirror. "What's the meaning of this?"

"Not bad," Empress said, joining them.

Traci smirked. "It drew energy in by pulling in light through the void in front of its eyes. That's why it seemed to be made of shadow. I couldn't blast the void away, but then I realized that light bounces off a mirror. It can't pull any more energy in in that prison, and it's going to slowly lose its powers."

"Let him out, now!" Malice demanded. Let him out or I'll—"

Empress' uninjured arm lashed out with her sword to Malice's throat. "Or you'll what?" she said dangerously.

"I'll kill you all!"

Traci shook her head. "No, I think not." The witch kicked Malice in the face, the malicious little New God flying backwards and herself getting stuck in the sticky tar that the surface of the mirror had been transformed into. She fell through, and then shot to her feet, pounding on the glass.

"Don't leave me here!" she shouted. "Or at least... at least bring Chessure something to eat. He gets testy when he's not been fed, and I don't want to put up with him hungry."

Traci frowned. "Oh, I think he'll have something to tie him over. It's not much, just a snack, but it will satisfy him until the spell wears off. We'll be gone by then."

"What are you talk—" Malice stopped mid-sentence, her eyes widening in horror. She turned and looked at the shadow beast. "No, Cheshy, you wouldn't! Don't be silly."

Chessure just smiled broadly, and stalked over towards Malice, drooling his acrid drool again.

"Don't listen to _them_!"

Traci and Empress turned and left the room, conveniently 'not hearing' Malice's scream of terror.

**

* * *

**

Chaos, the void that was—that which existed before time began—plummeted along with Young Justice into the white realm of nonexistence below Tartarus. Its single massive eye blasted bolts of energy towards Wonder Girl, but she deflected them with her bracelets and flew at the void. Another beam lashed out, and Wonder Girl dodged; she knew the plan.

She was just a distraction; Miss Martian appeared on the other side of Chaos, blasting lasers from her eyes into Chaos' single gaping orb; then a quartet of arrows lanced out of Arrowette's bow and hit the eye as well. Superboy swooped in, blasting laser eyes that cut into the tendrils that held the eye to the rest of the void, and finally Kid Eternity grabbed it, reaching deep inside and ripping out the soul.

The void turned to a substance that seemed like water and dispersed; the eyeball turned gray and disintegrated.

"So, what now?" Superboy asked.

For a moment or two, nobody said anything. Then Secret pointed downward and shouted.

"Look there's land down there!"

Everyone turned and twisted to see that she was correct. What looked like a vast planet made of washed-out sepia tones was rapidly approaching. None of them had seen it from farther away—it was as though the planet had materialized from nowhere and extended in all directions for infinity. Those members of Young Justice that could fly grabbed the members that could not, and soon they all swooped down into a vast town square of a sepia-toned city. In the distance, there was a large building that bore a sign:

LIMBO TOWN HALL

"So, what," Superboy asked. "We've fallen through Oblivion and now we're in Limbo?"

"That's about the size of it!" came an unfamiliar voice. They turned to see a short man in a jester outfit that might have been violet if not for the washed-out sepia filter over everything. He looked like someone that even the weakest of them could easily trounce in a fight, and even though looks could be deceiving, none of the members of Young Justice were on their guard.

"I'm sorry," Wonder girl said. "Who are you exactly?"

"The name's Merryman, little girl," he said. "I'm the mayor here in Limbo City. I'm sorry that you've all fallen in here, but I welcome you all the same. I'll see if I can make arrangements for you to get a home here. Can I have your names."

He seemed to materialize a clip board and note pat from nowhere.

"I'm Wonder Girl," said Cassie. "But wait, we're not staying here. Listen, there's a battle, a Crisis going on back on the surface and we need to get back to Earth."

Merryman let out a short derisive laugh. "Get back to Earth? I'm sorry, but that's just... that's just not possible. Once you're here in Limbo, there's no way out. Not unless you're summoned. And nobody's been summoned out of Limbo in... I don't remember the last time."

"What, you mean we're stuck here?!" Superboy shouted. "But what about my fans?"

Wonder Girl glared swords at him.

"And saving the Earth, of course!" he amended.

"Someone with fans actually falling into Limbo? Most unusual," Merryman said. "Nonetheless, it's doubtful that you'll be able to get out."

"But some of us can fly," Miss Martian said. "Surely we can just fly ourselves out of here."

"'Fraid not." Merryman looked at Arrowette and Kid Eternity and took their names. "It's been tried before. Once you get so high, you get utterly lost in Oblivion, and you end up right back here where you started from."

"How long have you been here?" Arrowette asked.

"Oh, I don't know," said the jester. "Time sort of loses all meaning here. Time, memory, heroism. There's nothing to do but talk and hope you retain your memories long enough to make yourself some new ones."

Wonder Girl bit into her lower lip and fell to her knees. "Then we're trapped here. And we're going to forget... stuff?"

"I'm really sorry." Merryman glanced over to Miss Martian and asked for her name. "I truly am. I'll try and make your eternal stay here as comfortable as possible."

**

* * *

**

Blue Beetle and his allies regrouped in the basement of the mansion and soon found a large mahogany door near the back; runes had been burned into the door, and Traci sensed a powerful magic barrier around it; it took her a while, but she and Empress eventually punched their way through. On the other side they found a dark room with a single glowing light in the middle, where characters swirled in a transparent barrier around a figure in the middle of the light.

Jaime rushed up towards the barrier, his Scarab blazing warnings about the forcefield.

But the woman—she was a woman, with wild black hair and chalky white skin, lying naked in and apparently unconscious—was something else entirely. The Scarab couldn't make her out at all—she was more than the Scarab's version of a question mark; she was like a fixed point, a universal constant that was somehow different than anything it had encountered before.

Jaime touched the barrier, and immediately the Scarab screamed inside his head; Jaime jerked his hand away—and felt as though all his willpower was leaving him. A new name filled his mind, his every thought centering on it.

DARKSEID!

"What?" came a voice in front of him.

Jaime blinked, staring at Traci. He realized suddenly that he was on his butt looking up at his girlfriend, who was hunched over him eying him skeptically.

"Huh?" Jaime stammered.

"You just said 'Darkseid'!" Traci said, frowning. "What prompted that?"

"I don't know," Jaime said. "Darkseid... that names sounds familiar, though. He tried to invade the planet a few years ago."

"He was worse than just any alien invader," Traci said, extending a hand to help Jaime up. "Darkseid is an alien god of pure evil. He tried to invade Earth multiple times before the last time three years ago, but I was under the impression that he was gone for good this time."

"He isn't."

The voice was new—it was kind but forceful, ancient yet vivacious. Jaime and Traci turned along with all the others to see that the woman behind the force field was standing now, looking at all of them with a sad smile.

"You're awake," Jaime said, smiling, and trying not to stare at her bare chest.

"In as much as I was ever asleep, yes," she said. "I suppose you know who I am?"

"Death?" Kid Devil said, his voice sounding like he was trying not to gulp.

She nodded. "Darkseid, unfortunately, never had his scheduled meeting with me. The death of a god is different than that of a mortal, and I wasn't in charge of guiding those souls to their final resting place."

"Who.. or what was?" Traci asked.

"Another New God." Death closed her eyes and looked at her feet, twisting them inward and standing pigeon-toed. "The Black Racer. Unfortunately, when Darkseid's body was destroyed three years ago, it was just after receiving a gift from Lex Luthor—the Anti-Life Equation. It's the same evil thought that powers this barrier around me. Darkseid used the Equation to steal the will from the Black Racer. He was able to circumvent his own death and reincarnated himself in the body of a human."

Jaime blinked. "He's the one who kidnapped you?"

Death nodded. "Yeah. He gave my Ankh—my symbol of power—to the Black Racer, and sent him out to harvest souls. What's been going on since I've been trapped in here? What did Darkseid unleash on the world?"

Jaime frowned. "It's a long story."

"How do we get you out of here?" Traci asked. "Just say the word and we'll do it."

"How did you find me?" Death smiled. "Did one of my siblings send you?"

"Delirium," Jaime confirmed.

Just then, the barrier around Death fizzled out. Death speculated that the power of Life generated by the five teenagers had caused the Anti-Life to fizzle out, though the Scarab had its own theories and Traci wanted an explanation that obeyed the laws of magic. Traci and Empress fetched Death some clothes from Malice's room and magically enlarged them to fit Death.

When they started out the door, though, Death paused and went back into a room in the upstairs of the mansion, pushing open a partially-cracked door and peering into a study with a single black chair in the middle.

"What's in here?" Jaime said, stepping up behind her.

"This chart," she said, motioning to a piece of parchment on the wall with a multitude dots, labeled in a script that Jaime couldn't read and the Scarab couldn't translate. It seemed to be some sort of star chart at first, but then Jaime saw that there was a single star drawn and labeled specifically near the bottom left corner of the map.

"What is it?"

"He can't be planning to bring so many planets into this solar system," Death mused. "The gravitational forces would tear them all apart. But the way they're arranged. That's not possible."

"What's not possible?" Traci asked

"Well, it would involve some non-euclidean geometry, but if you connected the dots in all the right ways, you'd have the fundamental design of the universe mapped out—like the DNA of creation. But there's no way—that should be impossible. There's no way that Darkseid could know that. Only the Endless and our Boss know that—and I know none of us would divulge it."

"It would seem," Young Frankenstein said, "That someone else is in on the secret."

**

* * *

**

Batman lashed out, striking another futile blow at Nyx, whose shadowy form just subsided long enough for him to miss. Then she struck, driving a powerful fist into Batman's chest, driving him back against a large transparent window. She lunged at him, and Batman rolled out of the way, her shadowy form slamming against the glass. He turned and threw a flash bang grenade; the explosion was bright enough to activate the light filter in his visor and loud enough to do the same with the sound filter over his ears. Nyx seemed to melt away in the flash and Batman quickly scanned for her. Surely taking down a goddess wouldn't be that easy.

Batman's fears were confirmed when shadows around the room coalesced into the form of Nyx, now wielding a large sword. The goddess lunged forward, and Batman rolled sideways; the sword slammed into the floor and seemed to sink into it. Batman started to take a second to breathe, but then saw a shadow reaching out from where the sword had hit the ground. It reached him in a split second, and then the black blade of the sword shot out of the ground and stabbed into Batman's leg. The Dark Knight snarled in pain, leaping away before the sword could dig in too deep.

Nyx picked up her sword and the extension across the ground vanished. Batman strafed around her, favoring the leg that had not been stabbed, waiting for Nyx to lunge again.

She did, and this time Batman tossed an explosive—back behind him, at the window. Batman dived behind a large metal bulkhead as the explosive went off.

And did nothing. The window wasn't damaged at all.

But then, the Martian Manhunter turned visible just behind Nyx and surged forward, grabbing the goddess and turning her intangible too. The pair phased right through the window. J'onn gave Bruce a salute, then vanished again. Nyx tried to lash out at him, but found no target to hit Silently, she returned her attention to the window, flying up to it and pounding against it furiously as she tried to get back inside.

In the distance, Batman could see the sun rising around the silhouette of Earth, and decided to leave Nyx to her fate.

He turned to the fight between Talia and Ra's; they were still clashing with swords in the far corner of the room. Batman could see that Talia's clothing had been sliced open on her right leg and her left arm, with bleeding wounds in her flesh. Ra's also had a wound, what seemed to be a stabbing wound in his abdomen; his shirt was bloody.

Talia smashed her sword down, but her father deflected it and tried to score a hit on Talia's neck. She was able to move her head out of the way, and Talia ducked under his extended grasp and kneed her father in the stomach, driving him back. She swung her sword down with one hand; she didn't have full leverage, but it was powerful enough to cut into Ra's shoulder and leave a gash.

Ra's stepped forward and shouted as he punched Talia in the face, staggering her backward. She wiped blood from her nose and glared at her father.

"You have overstepped your boundaries, my daughter," Ra's said. "Your love of my enemy has grown beyond my wildest expectations."

"You still don't get it," Talia hissed. "It's not my love of Bruce that is driving me to fight you. It's my hatred of what you've become."

She slashed her sword at Ra's again, but this time he was ready, and parried her attack, throwing her off balance and delivering a powerful kick to her side. Talia pitched forward and her sword clattered to the floor, sliding over to Batman's feet.

Bruce picked it up and stepped over to Ra's, standing between her and Talia until she was able to get to her feet.

"He's been toying with me," Talia whispered. "Something has gotten into his mind. It's sharpening his reactions, making him stronger. Usually he has to fight me at his best to beat me."

"We'll take him together," Batman said. He handed Talia her sword and drew one from his utility belt—a tiny sword that he used The Atom's technology to restore to its normal size.

Ra's smiled. "Very well, Detective."

Ra's rushed forward, and Batman and Talia followed, their swords clashing repeatedly. Seconds seemed like hours as the fight became like a dance, a three-way battle of will and steel and skill. Talia deflected so that Ra's fell towards Bruce, who was able to lash out; but Ra's _was_ reacting faster than normal, and he was able to dodge Bruce's strike.

He lashed out, and Bruce defended.

Talia attacked, but Ra's wasn't hurt. He threw his daughter off balance and would have scored a hit—except Batman intervened.

Bruce felt his muscles tensing, the fatigue and the wounds beginning to affect him. He imagined that Talia must be in a similar situation; Ra's however, seemed to have boundless energy, and his wounds didn't seem to bother him.

Ra's lashed out, smashing into Bruce with the hilt of his sword and then striking at Talia. She blocked two strikes, but Ra's was overwhelming her. Batman stepped in, taking the brunt of Ra's wrath while Talia side stepped, taking a breather for a split second before stepping back in to relieve her Beloved.

The back and forth went on for minutes that seemed like hours, but Ra's was gaining the upper hand, and when he drove his sword straight through Bruce's armor, cutting into his side, Batman began to worry. Then Ra's tore the sword out, splattering blood on the floor, whirled it around, and smacked Talia across the head with the reverse side. The sound alone let Bruce know it had been a solid hit, and Talia staggered back and crumpled to the floor. She wasn't moving.

Ra's walked forward as Bruce crawled backward, his injured legs giving him hell. He tried to prop himself up against the wall to stand up, but the smooth surfaces of Cronus' interior didn't give him any friction and he slipped, the back of his head crashing into a metal bulkhead. More pangs of weakness and pain wracked his body, and not for the first time, Bruce felt old.

"Ah, Detective," Ra's said. "It pains me to see you like this. You know, I could offer you more. I could make you into a god—enhance your body like I have used the technologies of Cronus to enhance my own. We could remake the world and you would rule a vast empire."

Batman narrowed his eyes, trying to focus and make his double vision cease.

"Go to hell, Ra's," Batman growled.

Ra's eyes closed and he frowned, lowering his head in disappointment. "Like my daughter, you insist on opposing me when I would extend my grace to you. I have no other option, Detective."

Ra's raised his scimitar, and sliced down at Bruce's head.

Then there was a brilliant flash and a powerful warmth burning against Bruce's chest. He opened his eyes and looked down to see a column of light—and it was emanating from the Bat symbol on his chest.

Bruce had no idea what was going on.

The column of light had blasted Ra's across the room, and was now balling up in front of Bruce. A dark silhouette formed in the light and then shifted into the shape of a human figure, one with a cape draped over his shoulders and spiky hair on top of his head.

As the light faded, the newcomer fell to the floor, landing in feet clad with steel-toed boots.

"R... Robin?" Batman said. "What... what the hell just happened?"

"I was afraid that wouldn't work," Robin said, looking over his shoulder at Batman. "Raven and Jason Blood used iconography magic to create a link between your armor and the Bat Signal in Gotham. I used it as a portal. Thought you could use the help."

"Ah, the Boy Detective," Ra's said, throwing his cape and shoulder plate aside. "I must say that was an impressive entrance. And just when your mentor was in the jaws of certain defeat. I must say, Timothy you have impeccable timing."

Robin tossed Batman a small phial of amber liquid. "Drink that. Nectar of the gods; it will make you feel better."

"I'm hallucinating," Batman growled. "That's the only explanation. I've died and now I'm hallucinating in the afterlife."

"Bruce, focus. It's time to save the world!" Robin reached into his utility belt and pulled out a pair of Birdarangs, linking them together. They transformed in his hands into Robin's sword.

Bruce downed the phial and immediately felt a portion of his strength return. He stood up on legs less-wobbly and clutched his sword more tightly.

Batman and Robin both raised their swords and ran forward, striking high and parrying low, as Ra's defended and deflected. Batman and Robin's motions were like clockwork—perfectly in sync, coordinated down to the tiniest detail.

Batman deflected, Robin was there to strike; the Boy Wonder cut into Ra's al Ghul's arm, but the terrorist moved with alarming speed, smashing his empty fist into Robin's face. Robin staggered and wiped blood from his mouth. But Batman was already picking up the slack, driving Ra's towards the center of the room.

The Demon's Head almost didn't notice when Robin attacked him from behind, and as Ra's raised his hand to defend, Robin altered the arc of his attack slightly.

The blade cut into Ra's wrist and severed the hand completely. It fell to the floor as blood gushed from Ra's wrist.

"NO!" Ra's thundered. "Cronus! Activate the Epsilon protocol!"

The entire Titan shook violently, and Batman and Robin were thrown from their feet; Bruce landed next to Talia. As Batman looked up, a portal opened behind the mastermind, and he grabbed his severed hand with his healthy one and started to retreat. Batman narrowed his eyes and hurled a Batarang, slicing into Ra's hand just as he stepped through the portal.

The severed hand fell to the deck—just as Robin lunged, sword-in-hand, into Ra's, knocking the terrorist through the portal and sailing on through himself.

It closed in a blue flash.

"Tim!" Batman rushed to the window to see what precisely the Epsilon protocol entailed. It became immediately apparent that Cronus had broken apart—it's head, limbs, and torso were now floating through space in separate pieces, and some of those pieces were further self-destructing.

"He would have retreated to the genetics laboratory." Talia said. Batman turned to see her standing behind him, cradling her wounded arm."My father had a back-up control center build there. The Epsilon protocol was designed to prevent anyone from getting their hands on the Titan technology."

"I have to go after Robin," Batman said. "Ra's is out of his league."

"First thing's first," Talia said, motioning towards the severed hand in the center of the room. "You have what you came for. The Gorgon's Head would be embedded in his right hand."

Batman knelt and picked up the severed hand. Talia knelt beside him.

"Take off your glove and place your fingers against his," she said. Batman did so.

Immediately, light flowed out of Ra's hand, particles of energy that swam through the air, coiled around Bruce's hand, and then sank into his flesh. The symbol of a lightning bolt appeared on the back of his hand, like a tattoo.

Suddenly, Bruce could feel—and more than feel, he could see and hear—the other Titans, and what was left of the self-destructing Cronus. Their thoughts, their emotions, and their wills were his to manipulate. It was as though the entire control manual for the Titans was immediately burned into his mind—but at the same time, that it was written in a language he could barely decipher. No wonder Ra's wasn't able to use them to their full potential. Bruce got the sense that adjusting the course of the Titans even slightly would be like trying to steer a sailing ship by blowing on the sail with his breath.

He focused, forcing his mind into the interaction with the other Titans, and gave them a command.

"Cease!" he said. "End your attacks on Earth."

_But Master! _A cacophony of replies came, protesting the command.

"CEASE!" Bruce repeated. "Stop attacking Earth. Fly into outer space and self destruct."

_But._

"NOW!" Bruce thundered.

Silence. One by one, Batman could feel the Titans moving, sense them as they ceased their attacks and flew above the atmosphere.

One by one, the Titans of Myth flared up with power and then ceased to exist.

**

* * *

**

Nobody could explain it; one minute the world seemed on the verge of collapse—and then suddenly the Titans stopped. At first people feared that they were only preparing for something even more horrible than the wanton destruction of Earth's cities, but then they had all flown away and blown up. The day had been saved, though nobody knew how.

But as celebrations broke out over the planet below, a group of thirty-six hundred figures glowing with yellow energy appeared in the atmosphere.

Sinestro hovered above the Earth, along with his corps.

"It seems this planet has already been ravaged," he told his men. "This bodes well for us. Let us subdue them before they can recover. The people will welcome our rule—or they will perish."


	7. A Hiding Place from the Wind

**Deus Ex Machina**

**Chapter Seven  
**

**A Hiding Place From the Wind**

Billy Batson slipped out of his makeshift bed—a sleeping bag in a tent that evacuees from Fawcett City had been using as shelter for the past week. He had heard shouting, which he had at first thought were screams of terror. But then he listened closer and realized that they were shouts of triumph, that there was an ecstatic celebration going on outside in the refugee camp. As he left his tent, he heard his sister Mary slipping out of hers as well, and he joined her.

"What's happening?" she asked.

"Not sure."

Billy led her towards the shouts and soon found a clearing where several hundred adults were gathered around and underneath the tent where radios and televisions were constantly on trying to gleam whatever news they could about the Titans' siege of the planet.

One woman standing silently but smiling with a look of utmost content on her face sat down near the outskirts of the celebration, looking quite exhausted. Billy approached her.

"Ma'am... um... what's with the party?" he asked.

"They won!" she said, beaming. "The Justice League won. The Titans stopped attacking and all blew up."

Billy looked at Mary, who was smiling broadly.

"That's fantastic!" his sister cried. "But what about all the gods?"

"From what I've heard," the woman said, "They've been stopping as well. Someone said they saw Thor himself get clobbered by Supergirl, and then get up and start apologizing to her profusely."

Billy took a step back, looking pointedly at Mary. They didn't have to speak to each other to know what the other was thinking. Both of them ran out away from the tent and to a secluded area behind an old garage where no people could see them.

"Sh... SHAZAM!" Billy tried.

Nothing.

"SHAZAM!" he repeated, again to no avail.

"Our powers are still on the fritz," Billy said.

"SHAZAM!" Mary cried. She too did not transform, and she turned to him looking sour. "I was hoping I could still transform since we're powered by different gods."

Lacking anything else to do, Mary and Billy returned to the celebration and grabbed a couple of root beers. It wasn't long before they had put their still-malfunctioning powers to the back of their mind. An hour passed, then maybe another fifteen minutes. Billy lay back in a lawn chair staring up at the sky, where shooting stars periodically fell—supposedly burning remains of the Titans of Myth entering the atmosphere.

And then he noticed one particularly bright falling object that didn't appear to be vanishing.

"Oh no," he whispered to Mary, grabbing her by the shoulder and pointing her towards the point of light. "It's too big a piece to burn, it's going to hit the planet."

"The color is different on that one," Mary said. "It's too... yellow."

Billy looked again, and as the shooting star grew, he realized that she was right. Quickly it became obvious why—the falling object was not an asteroid but a living being. Clad in yellow and black armor, the bird-headed alien slammed into the ground near the media tent, throwing gravel into the air and causing the ground to rumble.

The alien turned to the humans gathered underneath the tent.

"My name is Romat-Ru," he said. "Do you fear me?"

"Not really," said a man who had clearly had too much to drink. He staggered up to the alien and tossed bear on him. "You super putzes all look alike to me."

Romat-Ru tilted his head forward, a dangerous look in his massive eyes.

Before Billy knew what had happened, the yellow ring on Ru's finger flashed, and a massive spike construct of yellow energy erupted through the drunk man's chest, then slid out. Blood started oozing from the wound, and the man fell down and stopped moving. Many in the crowd shrieked in horror, and Billy looked away and winced.

"Foolish," Romat-Ru said. "This planet has been claimed in the name of the Sinestro Corps. Any attempts to oppose our rule will be dealt with..."

Ru paused, yellow tendrils slithering out from his ring and lifting the corpse of the drunk man so that everyone could see it.

"Harshly."

**

* * *

**

_Metropolis_

Dozens of blazing yellow meteors streaked over the skyline. The L in LEXCORP and the giant globe atop the Daily Planet exploded into thousands of pieces as the Sinestro Corps members descended into the atmosphere, and down in Centennial Park, a celebration was cut short by a resounding crash.

"What the hell was that?!" cried Natasha Irons.

Her uncle, John Henry, also known as Steel, appeared behind her, pointing up at the source of the noise. "We might have started this party too early. Looks like we have more bogeys." His voice was full of disgust and fatigue.

John Henry took off, flying up to the nearest brilliant yellow streak of light, his hammer raised and ready. As he approached, he realized that the yellow energy was a shield surrounding a humanoid being, and it was emanating from a ring on the alien's finger—like someone forgot to mix the Blue into a Green Lantern ring.

"Who are you and what are you doing in my city?" Steel demanded.

The being, an alien monster with three mouths and three eyes, grunted something in a guttural language; but a calm voice emanated from the yellow field around him."I am Tri-Eye of the Sinestro Corps, and I'm here to claim this city in the name of Sinestro."

"Sinestro?" Steel barked. "You follow him? I thought he was in the Green Lantern prison."

The guttural voice intoned again, translated by the ring. "Sinestro has escaped and the Green Lantern Corps is no more. Surrender now or face your worst fears."

Steel narrowed his eyes behind his heavy face plate. "Sorry, I'll have to pass on that."

He rushed forward, ramming into the alien with his shoulder and then swinging his hammer around, bashing the alien's face. It snarled and flew backwards, but a shield had formed around its head to absorb most of the impact. Three more members of the Sinestro Corps appeared behind Tri-Eye, and Steel flew backwards a bit until he bumped into something. He glanced behind him to see Atomic Man, STRIPE, and his niece backing him up. He suddenly felt less tense.

"They're with Sinestro," Steel said. "Let's give them a proper welcome to Earth."

**

* * *

**

_Space_

Robin dove forward, barely dodging a slash from Ra's' sword, and then turned, throwing his own blade up and blocking Ra's' as it came down at his head. Robin stood up, trying to force Ra's' sword out of his hands, but the terrorist overpowered Robin and reversed the momentum. Robin pulled his sword away, trying to pull Ra's off balance; his plan failed, and when Robin tried to counter the next blow, Ra's sword clashed with his and sent the Boy Wonder's blade flying out of his hands. The sword clattered against the wall and transformed into a pair of birdarangs.

Ra's loomed over Robin and raised his falchion.

Then, blasts of fire and ice slammed into Ra's from the side, sending him careening across the room and through an open passage; the sword that Ra's had been wielding clattered to the ground, bent out of shape in once place and cracked half way across the blade in another from the combined fire and ice attack.

"Thanks," Robin called to the heroines Ice and Fire. The two elemental beauties and Black Lightning had succeeded in disrupting Cronus' reproductive functions before Ra's had initiated his protocol to make the chief Titan break apart into separate sections, but now there was—stuff—some sort of healing agent leaking from the pipes throughout the inside of the Titan. Any wound that Ra's and Robin inflicted on each other was closing almost instantly, and Robin was sure that a few minutes ago he'd had a broken rib or two from the portal-dive he took.

Robin picked up his birdarangs and started toward the room that Fire and Ice had blasted Ra's into.

"Wait." Black Lightning stepped up next to him; his suit was dotted with holes where OMAC lasers had blasted through the armor, but there were no wounds underneath because of the healing reagent in the air.

"Pierce?" Robin asked, arching an eyebrow.

"Robin, don't be stupid. That's the reactor room. We shouldn't even be standing here with the door open, let alone following Ra's in there."

Robin gestured to reagent in the air. "I don't think I'll have to worry about radiation."

"What if Ra's overloads the reactor?" Ice said, looking worried. "The explosion could kill you both."

"As long as Ra's doesn't escape, that's a risk I'm willing to take," Robin said, slamming one fist into his other open hand. "He's done too much damage and caused too much death to let him get away this time."

Black Lightning grimaced. "There's a difference in being heroic and being stupid, son. Let's see if we can get back to the Javelin or else we might be stuck on this thing."

An idea clicked in Robin's mind, and he nodded, and began to follow Black Lightning, Fire, and Ice towards the exit. But as the trio of Leaguers reached the door that led out of the genetics laboratory, they turned back—to find Robin gone.

Black Lightning rushed back in to see him, just as he mashed the panel that caused the omnisteel door to slid closed and latch, locking himself in the reactor room. Lightning smashed his fist against the door, shouting for Robin to open it. Robin just shook his head at the sounds of Pierce's muffled curses through the door, and turned to find Ra's.

Robin found that the door to the reactor core had been prized open and peeled back like the lid of a metal can. Robin slid through the door and into the room, where hundreds of reactor rods jutted up from a glowing solution in a gulf that spanned across the massive room. Electricity arced across nodes on the ceiling, and it looked as though the reactor unit had been severely damaged, as wires were poking everywhere. It was warm and muggy, causing the water in the pit below to steam, and between that and the healing reagent that had leaked into the air, visibility was low.

Robin pulled out his bo-staff and reached out with his foot, testing the half-submerged reactor rods. When he was sure they could hold his weight, he started off into the fog, knowing that Ra's was hiding somewhere in the mist.

Robin wouldn't be using his eyes until Ra's was close, so he kept them on the reactor rods, slowly walking out into the middle of the room. The warmth from the liquid below was pouring up, and sweat was pouring off of Robin, getting into his mask and stinging. He pulled the mask off and dropped it into the reactor soup below.

Just then, a sound to his left caused him to turn his head; Ra's was rushing at him, his shirt and cape discarded. The Demon's Head was unarmed, attacking with his hands and feet. Robin threw up a defense with his bo, blocking Ra's' palm strike and then smashing the staff against the follow up kick. It struck the side of Ra's' leg, and Robin tried to follow up with a reverse strike, but Ra's dropped down, one hand hitting the reactor rods to support his weight, even as his foot shot out in a powerful kick that slammed into Robin's chest.

Robin's breath rushed out with the impact, and it took all his mental power to remember to plant his feet on the nearest reactor rods in addition to breathing. He landed a bit off balance had to move his foot from one rod to the next to keep from falling. Ra's stood and strode towards him, his feet finding the tops of the reactor rods effortlessly.

Robin goggled when he realized that his own bo was now in Ra's' left hand.

The terrorist dropped the weapon into the pit and charged at Robin, his feet again effortlessly finding the reactor rods. Robin threw up a defense, but Ra's overpowered him, smashing the Boy Wonder in the face and staggering him backwards. Robin fought to keep his feet on the rods and deflected Ra's follow up punch, then grabbed Ra's' arm. Using himself as a fulcrum, Robin hurled the terrorist over his shoulders and slammed him down against the reactor rods.

Ra's snarled, but Robin didn't let him get up; he kicked down at Ra's head. But the terrorist was incredibly fast, his left hand appearing in front of Ra's' head and catching Robin's foot. Ra's pulled the Boy Wonder off balance and Robin's free leg came off the reactor rod. He fell, his hands extending to keep his face from slamming into a reactor rod.

Ra's al Ghul rolled to his left, pulling Robin with him and hurling the Boy Wonder across the room. Robin landed hard on his back, reactor rods holding him up and simultaneously acting as a dozen metallic jabs into his back and shoulders. Worse, his costume's armor was thinner than that of his boots, and he could feel the heat of the cylinders threatening to blister his flesh. Robin planted his arms and legs on four separate rods and pushed himself to his feet, just in time to sidestep as Ra's attacked again, his massive fist crashing down where Robin had just been standing. Robin's fist flashed out, slamming into Ra's elbow with a satisfying crack.

A grimace played across Ra's face, but quickly subsided. Robin muttered a curse under his breath—he couldn't use his speed and agility to wear Ra's down because of the healing reagent in the air. If he was going to win, he'd have to do something decisive. Grim thoughts crossed Robin's mind, but he resolved not to act on them. He'd find another way.

He blinked; in that split second, Ra's slammed a fist into his face, driving him back. He slipped off the rods and started falling in between them, but quickly reached out and held himself up with his hands, his arms straining to hold his weight up. His boots hovered inches above the radioactive soup in the pit below them. Ra's smirked and walked over raising his leg to stomp on Robin's hand. Robin pushed up with his arms forcing himself out of the pit; he rolled backwards, just as Ra's kicked him in the chest. It drove the breath out of him, but also managed to drive him farther away from the terrorist, giving him an opportunity to get back on his feet. He reached for his belt and grabbed the pair of birdarangs that formed his sword, and brought them together...

Just as Ra's reached him and kicked his hands, sending both birdarangs flying out. Robin dodged the follow up strike from Ra's and grabbed one birdarang, but the other clattered against the side of a reactor rod and fell into the soup below.

Robin felt something slam into his leg and felt his tibia and fibula snap in two. Pain shot through his body, and he fell onto his stomach, his chin hitting a reactor rod. His face burned then immediately healed, then burned again when he felt Ra's step down hard on his back and force his face back down onto the cylinder. Robin twisted his head so that his face wasn't touching the burning metal, but he could barely move otherwise.

"You really are an arrogant child," Ra's said. "To think that because of a few training sessions with Master Chu-Hui that you have the skills to face an immortal challenger with nearly six-hundred years experience on you as a martial artist."

"The thought," Robin said through clenched teeth, "crossed my mind."

Ra's responded by pressing down with more weight on his back; slowly the reactor rods began to lower into the radioactive soup below.

"My intelligence indicates that you were the one who finally killed the Joker," Ra's said. "How did it feel?"

Robin was drawing ever closer to the liquid below. He didn't answer Ra's question, not giving him the satisfaction of getting under his skin. Instead he stared at the liquid and prepared for the undoubtedly unimaginable pain he would soon be feeling.

Just then, a dark blot in the glowing liquid floated into his view, and Robin squinted to see through the fumes that it was his birdarang.

His steel birdarang. _Floating_.

Robin decided that he _really_ didn't want to touch that substance.

"You know, child," Ra's said. "You don't have to make a martyr of yourself. I could take you as an apprentice. Mold you into a soldier in my army, a warrior to help me bring in my new world order. Spare you from a foolish death."

Robin grunted, biding his time.

The rods sank lower into the super-dense sludge. Robin let his left arm dangle.

Ra's repeated his offer, and Robin could only pray that Ra's could not see what he was attempting to grab.

"Why do you hold to the ideas of your mentor? He has all but disowned you, forbidden you from being Robin and taken in other apprentices to fulfill your duties."

"Bruce does what he thinks is best," Robin growled, just as his fingers grazed the burning-hot soup below. Then they clasped around steel.

"As must I, fledgling." Ra's foot pressed harder on the small of Ra's back, causing further pain in Robin's abdomen as it pressed against one of the cylinders. But it freed his upper body ever so slightly. And Robin leaned up twisting around and slashing the back of Ra's knee with the razor edge of his birdarang.

Ra's staggered as his blood sprayed out, and Robin used this window to force himself to his feet, and slammed the birdarang in his left hand together with the one in his right. They transformed into his sword and in the same smooth motion he whirled the sword back around. The golden blade flashed.

Two fingers fell from Ra's hand into the soup below.

"Joker tried to shape me into his apprentice. So did Slade. After their efforts, yours is nothing."

Then a thin red line appeared across the terrorist's neck; blood began flowing out even as the terrorist's footing finally slipped, and Ra's tumbled into the radioactive sludge below.

Even without Ra's weight, the rods were still sinking, now just inches from the liquid, and Robin leaped off, banging his leg painfully against one of the columns but managing to make it up.

He tossed a glance down at Ra's, and quickly regretted. The sight of burning flesh brought back bad memories.

Robin left the reactor room., leaving Ra's charred corpse behind.

**

* * *

**

_Metropolis_

Steel flew backwards, blasting missiles and shotgun bursts from the concealed launchers in his armor; the projectiles lanced out, slamming into the force shield that Tri-Eye had put up. The shotgun pellets stopped dead and the missiles exploded into a cloud of fire and smoke. The Sinestro Corps member emerged from the cloud, swinging a massive yellow hammer at Steel, which smashed into his chest and tore off the S-Shield and mangled the armor underneath.

Steel went careening back and slammed into the statue of Superman that stood in Centennial Park, knocking its head off.

Stargirl and STRIPE appeared beside him, hovering in front of the Superman statue's shoulders.

"They're overwhelming us," Stargirl shouted. "We need the big guns here. Where the hell are Superman, Wonder Woman, Green Lantern, Flash?"

"I don't think they're comin', Courtney," STRIPE said, blasting futilely at the approaching group of three Sinestro Corps members.

"You two," Steel ordered, flying forward. "Order a full retreat of all the heroes in the area. Go into hiding. We can't win the fight this way."

"What are you gonna do?" STRIPE demanded.

"I'm going to distract them. You guys get into hiding." Steel blasted forward, setting his nuclear-powered hammer to its highest setting as he blazed towards Tri-Eye. The alien raised his ring and spears of yellow energy lanced out. Steel dodged through them, and Tri-Eye's mouths smiled.

"Like a challenge, do you?" Steel barked. "Well try dodging this!"

And suddenly Steel was surrounded by hundreds of Green Lanterns, green beams blasting from their rings, peppering the Sinestro Corps members with energy...

Steel smashed into Tri-Eye with his hammer; the alien's armor shattered, and he coughed up blood as he went careening into the distance.

"That's impossible!" a nearby Sinestro Corps member called. "We defeated the Green Lanterns! They're all dead or imprisoned."

Steel smirked, hovering in front of him. Just as quickly as they had appeared, all the Green Lanterns vanished. The alien's eyes narrowed as he realized what had happened.

"Holograms!" he snarled. He and his companion blasted at Steel again, and Steel fought them off as best he could.

By the time they subdued him, Stargirl and STRIPE were long gone.

**

* * *

**

_The Etherverse_

The lightning arced across a huge open plain, where villas doted the fields and a gentle breeze was disturbed only by the two lightning-fast streaks of motion that darted across. Flash and Kid Flash blared every closer to the bolt that would empower Captain Marvel—if only they could catch it.

"Where are we now?" Bart asked, taking point for a change in front of Wally.

"If my Greek-Myth knowledge is right, I think this is the Elysian Field, where the heroic dead go to rest." Flash darted forward, reaching his hand out to grab the tail of the lightning, but at the last minute it changed direction, zigign sharply to the right. Flash stumbled and fell, rolling end over end across the gentle grass until coming to a halt in front of a small villa.

A tall muscle-bound man with a magnificent beard came out and started yelling at him in ancient Greek.

"Sorry, Perseus," Wally said, raising a cautionary hand. "Just chasing some lightning."

Kid Flash skidded to a halt beside him and helped him to his feet. "Let's go, Flash, before it gets away!"

Kid Flash took off and Wally took off after him, wishing that he had Bart's seemingly-boundless energy.

**

* * *

**

_New York City_

Storm clouds churned in the sky above, the maelstrom a mirror image of the Sky King's fury.

Diana charged towards Zeus, smashing her fists into the god's face and staggering him backwards, then whirling around with a powerful kick that sent the god reeling and sent a spray of ichor into the air. Zeus turned and snarled, bashing Diana backwards and following up by hurling a flurry of thunderbolts at her.

Diana's bracelets flashed, moving with superhuman speed to intercept the lightning. But this was no mortal projectile—it was the lightning of the Sky King, and it ran through Diana's body, jolting her bones and sending her five senses into disarray. The jolt subsided with every bone in her body aching sharply, and Diana smelt ozone in the air around her.

Zeus blasted with his thunderbolts again, and this time the jolt made Diana go limp, her body falling down to the rain-soaked street below. She felt the ground vibrate and heard thunderous footsteps as Zeus drew closer to her, and she looked up in time to see the god extend his arms out and form a spear the length of a bus in his left hand. Diana glared at him defiantly, and then shut her eyes, lowered her face and whispered a prayer to Hera.

She heard thunder again, and felt rain start to fall against the back of her arms and legs.

But she did not feel the stabbing pain of Zeus' spear.

Diana looked up to see more figures that had come to he raid—a group of five aliens she didn't recognize, all clad in black and yellow armor and wielding yellow power rings. She forced herself to her feet and flew up to the nearest one, a magenta-skinned male that was observing the others. Then, through the increasingly torrential rain, she recognized his face.

"Sinestro!" she growled.

"Ah." The space-criminal turned and smirked at her. "Wonder Woman. Weakened but not defeated. Tell me, what is this creature you're facing."

"You first," Diana said. "What are you doing here? How did you get out of prison?"

Sinestro glared, obviously affronted by the lack of respect Diana showed him. "That is unimportant. My corps has replaced the Green Lantern Corps as the guardian agency of this universe, and our first conquest is your world, Princess."

"Over my dead body!" Diana growled, raising a fist.

"I can arrange that," Sinestro said dangerously. "I command thousands of soldiers all as powerful as a Green Lantern. This planet will submit to our authority, and any resistance will be eliminated. But first I must tame the chaos that's been unleashed on your world."

"You... you want to stop Zeus?" Diana said, lowering her raised arm slightly, but hovering closer to Sinestro.

"Zeus?" Sinestro said, stroking his chin. "The deity of your lore. Interesting—an apparent incarnation of a mythological being. Likely mystical in nature, much like yourself."

Sinestro turned to Diana and gave her a wicked grin, a twisted yellow light emanating from his eyes. "Help me stop this rampaging god and I will spare you and your Amazon tribe."

Diana bit into her lip. She knew that the Amazons would die before they submitted to Sinestro and his men. If she could find a way to keep them alive...

The hand Diana had clenched into a fist opened slowly and extended to clasp around Sinestro's.

"Deal," growled Wonder Woman.

**

* * *

**

_The Etherverse_

Heavy doors made of oak and embossed with gold exploded into a shower of splinters as the lighting blasted through it, followed quickly by Flash and Kid Flash A massive mead hall lay beyond, with hundreds of helmeted Viking warriors sitting at a long table, imbibing giant mugs of mead and shouting good-natured insults at each other. Those shouts turned into cries of anger and alarm as the lighting bolt streaked across the table, shattering cups and exploding legs of chicken.

Flash and Kid Flash leaped on top of the table and darted across, their slipstream sending plates and mugs flying through the air and covering the table's revelers in their contents. The Flashes quickly reached the end of the table and dived for the lightning, but it zagged when they expected it to zig and flew straight towards a huge burly man in armor.

The man reached out and caught the lightning in his bare fist.

"Oh..." Flash said as he came to a dead stop in front of the man. "I'm sorry, who might you be?"

"The name is Erickson, yeng one. Lief Erickson."

"The guy who discovered America!" Bart said. "Sort of."

Erickson nodded. "Aye, that was me. Me and my cohorts here don't appreciate our eternal celebration in the halls of Valhalla here being interrupted. Ye're going to pay fer ye'er little trespass."

"We don't have any money," Bart said, a bit too quickly.

"Not with money, lad," Erickson said. "But with entertainment. Ye want this here bolt of lightning, right, lads?"

"Want is such a light word," Wally said. "More like, the fate of the world depends on us grabbing that lightning."

"Alright." Lief Erickson smirked. "Ye get to fight one of our monsters, and if you win, I'll give ye the lightning. If not, ye'll be dead, and it won't matter to ye."

It only took a few minutes for the preparations to take place. Flash and Kid Flash were escorted through the halls of Valhalla into a massive stadium where a fierce-looking beast was awaiting them, chained to a pair of stone pillars on the far end. It was basically humanoid in shape, but massive, with scaly-black skin and a long fiery-red beard. Several feet in front of it was a massive sword that glowed as if on fire, plunged into the ground with the hilt pointing to the ceiling.

"This," said Erickson, "is Surtr. Come Ragnarök, this beast will destroy the world, they say. But fer now, he's yer problem."

The chains holding Surtr to the two columns suddenly vanished, and the giant lurched forward, pulling his flaming sword out of the ground and lumbering towards Bart and Wally. Wally, for once, was holding to caution, approaching the monster slowly, all the while wondering what the hell he'd gotten himself into.

Bart wasn't so prudent, instead darting forward at full speed and diving between Surtr's legs. The monster growled, swinging his sword around behind him—and causing a huge column of fire to erupt through the air, slamming into Bart and blasting him into a wall.

"Kid Flash!" Wally shouted, darting over to help Bart up. "Are you okay?"

Bart was rubbing his face; Wally could smell singed hair and saw that some of the reddish brown mop on top of Bart's head had been fused together by the heat.

"I'm fine," spat Bart. "He caught me off gua—LOOK OUT!"

Wally looked up in time to see another massive wave of fire streaming at him, and he flung Bart to his left and broke right; the flames slammed into the wall behind him as Wally took off, and Surtr turned and hurled another burst of fireballs at him.

Flash dodged the first volley at superspeed and then ran back towards Surtr as the second ones reached him. He hit the dirt and dropped out of superspeed, and his slipstream hurled the fireballs back towards their creator. They slammed into Surtr and staggered him, catching his beard on fire. Surtr let out an angry wail and raised his sword. The flames on his beard danced through the air and were absorbed by the sword, extinguishing.

"We have to get rid of that sword," Bart said, appearing beside Wally.

"I have a plan." Wally stepped forward slightly.

Bart smirked. "Does it involve running around in circles really fast?"

"More or less," Wally said.

"You know, we're so predictable," said Bart, blasting off towards Surtr and darting around him in a wide arc, leaping over the giant's sword as he tried to skewer Kid Flash.

The Scarlet Speedster joined him, displacing the air around Surtr until it was a massive tornado that jerked the giant off his feet and pulled him up into the air. Surtr tumbled over, flailing with his sword and sending gouts of fire spraying at the ground. Wally zigged and zagged around the blasts and glanced up just in time to see Surtr slam into the ceiling of the stadium.

Surtr let out a growl at the impact and dropped his sword. The heavy steel fell hard and fast twoards the stadium, and Wally and Bart stopped. Then Surtr dived after it, reaching out to catch the falling weapon before he hit the ground.

"Don't let him get to it!" Wally shouted.

"Wally!" Bart took off at a run, building up speed as he circled the collesuem. "Give me a leg up!"

Kid Flash ran directly at Flash, and Wally went into super-speed overdrive, so that even Kid Flash seemed to be moving in slow motion. The Speed Force crackling through his arms and legs, Wally used his body as a step ladder for Kid Flash, and when Bart was off the ground and too high up for Wally to reach, Wally ran to the edges of the stadium and grabbed weapons out of the Vikings' scabbards, hurling them through the air with perfect timing to give Bart a stepping stone.

His muscles burned with Speed Force energy and Wally collapsed, the discharge of Speed Force energy blasting him against a wall of the stadium. All his limbs ached with impacts of Bart stepping on them.

He looked up in time to see Bart kick off the last weapon he'd thrown—a huge Norse battle ax—and leap into the air towards Surtr's sword. Bart kicked the blade's hilt, sending it rocketing through the air at an incredible speed and piercing Surtr through the chest. The momentum sent them flying towards a wall in the stands, where dozens of Vikings cleared out of the way as Surtr was pinned against the wal by his own blade.

Fire exploded from the giant's mouth and nose, and in moments his body crumbled away into ash, and only a charred skeleton remained.

"Holy crap!" Wally said, limping over to where Bart landed. "Where'd you learn to do that?"

"Soccer practice with Superboy," Bart said with a triumphant-but-pained grin.

Leif Erickson appeared behind them, holding Shazam's thunderbolt in his fist.

"That was a fine show!" he bellowed. "It looks as though Ragnarök has been canceled, boys!"

Erickson extended the lightning bolt towards them. "Ye've won this fair 'n'square. Tak yer prize!"

Wally and Bart reached out, both grabbing one end of the thunderbolt and holding on tightly; it struggled and wriggled, trying to escape their grasp, and worse, they had no idea what to do with it.

"Good, good, you got it!" came the voice of Hermes, who appeared beside them so quickly it made even the Flash blink.

"What's the meaning of this?" Erickson barked. "A Greek god in the halls of Valhalla? IT's blasphemy."

"Yeah, yeah," Hermes said, rolling his eyes and pushing Erickson away. "Tell it to Odin. Right now I've got a mortal plane to rescue."

Hermes waved his hand, opening a portal in front of the Flashes. Through it, a young boy was struggling as a bird-like man in yellow-and-gold armor lifted him off the ground, torturing him with yellow energy that emanated from his ring.

"SHAZAM!" the boy cried desperately. "SHAZAM!"

"You should have stayed in your tent, little boy," said Sinestro Corps member Romat-Ru. "The Sinestro Corps owns this planet now, and nosy children are the best kind of victims. They scream the loudest."

The boy glared at the alien defiantly.

Hermes slapped Wally and Bart on the back. "What are you waiting for, you dolt's. Send the lightning to the kid!"

Wally and Bart glanced at each other and shrugged, then aimed the bolt at the portal and let go.

**

* * *

**

Billy Batson screamed again as the yellow energies flowed through is body, digging into his nerve endings and sending jolts of pain through them at will. He felt spittle running down his face and tears running out of his eyes, but he didn't say anything. He just glared at Romat-Ru, forcing his fear away. He wouldn't give the alien bastard the satisfaction of hearing him beg. That's not what a hero would do.

"You'll break sooner or later," Ru said, sending another jolt of pain through Billy's body. "What do you say to that?"

"Shazam," Billy muttered.

"What was that?"

"I said... SHAZAM!"

The dam broke. A jolt of lighting came from above, slamming into Billy's form and shattering the yellow-energy constructs from Ru's ring. Power flowed out of the gods and kings of lore, transforming his body once more into the form of a superhero. But this time, he was different.

Billy's hair was long, silver—the same color as his costume. The golden thunderbolt on his chest and the golden trimming of his costume was also different, now a deep platinum shade. Energy seemed to crackle through his synapses and radiate out of his skin. He wasn't Captain Marvee. Shazam the Wizard was dead, but now... _Billy_ was Shazam. He could feel the powers not just of his six patrons—Solomon, Hercules, Achilles, Zeus, Atlas, and Mercury—but also the powers of Mary's patrons too, great goddesses of legend.

Romat-Ru formed a spiked mace and swung it at the reborn superhero, but Billy just raised a hand and caught it, crushing it in one hand and returning fire with a powerful punch.

His fist slammed into Ru's chest and kept on going, punching all the way through into the massive boulder behind.

Romat-Ru fell, dead, and Billy's mind was shot through with horror. This was.. too much. Too much power for him to have on his own. He couldn't control it. But the wisdom of Solomon and Minerva told him what to do. The ring on Romat-Ru's finger hovered off the ground, a voice emanating from it.

_Ring-Bearer Romat-Ru: Deceased.  
Searching for New Ring-Bearer_

Billy reached out and grabbed the ring from the air, and focused on it. There was power inside it, but it was corrupted, evil. Billy forced his will into the ring, and whispered the wizard's name again.

"Shazam..."

A crack of thunder resounded, but the lighting didn't arc into the sky, but from his body into the tiny ring, forcing out a massive column of yellow energy that split apart and flew off in all directions.

Once again a kid, Billy Batson held up the ring, which now bore the emblem of Shazam on its face. He slipped it onto his finger.

The wisdom of Solomon and of Minerva had told him one more thing: The Sinestro Corps would now be after him. They would be there to avenge their own. Billy Batson was now a killer. He had to get away. He and Mary would have to run.

This thought drove him forward, when all he really wanted to do was collapse and rest.

**

* * *

**

_New York_

The lightning bolt came out of nowhere and slammed into the god of the sky. Zeus' body spasmed and jerked, and when the lightning subsided, some of his glow was gone; the mad rage in his eyes had faded slightly. His body seemed to shrink, and his godlike muscles did not seem to bulge as much. Diana didn't know what had happened, but she quickly blasted forward, smashing her fists into Zeus' face repeatedly, knocking teeth from the Sky King's mouth and causing ichor to stain his beared.

Zeus snarled an insult in ancient Greek and swatted at Wonder Woman, but in his weakened state, she raised her arms to guard and intercepted the god's attack with no problem. Diana grabbed Zeus' fist and pulled it forward, pulling the god off balance and right into a crushing kick to his jaw. Zeus staggered back and fell to one knee, his enormous patella crushing a parked sports car that had somehow managed to survive the battle until that moment.

"You must calm down, Lord Zeus!" Diana shouted, unfurling her golden lasso. She thought that with the power and the rage that were driving Zeus to this frenzy partially subsided, her lasso would now have an affect—that it would make him see the truth, as well as the folly of his actions.

But Diana did not get a chance to test that theory. Huge spiked bludgeons constructed of yellow energy slammed into Zeus from opposite directions, and more Sinestro Corps members swooped in, yellow cords lancing out from their rings and binding the arms and legs of the Sky King. Wonder Woman looked on in disgust as the aliens defied her deity, tying him to massive energy stakes that they drove through the New York City asphalt and deep into the earth. Zeus was forced to kneel on both knees, hunched over and tied so that he could not move his body. The chords around him became massive chains and separated from the rings that generated them, locking the god in place. Wonder Woman could feel the chains radiating fear—and in horror she realized that it was Zeus' own fear—fear that he was going mad, that his kingship was coming to and end.

Fear of mortals.

Wonder Woman landed in front of him, looking up at Zeus in anger and shame and pity. Sinestro landed beside her, a satisfied smile across his face.

"You will leave Paradise Island alone," Wonder Woman said. "Or I will personally make you pay."

"Of course," Sinestro growled. He raised his ring and it flashed. Diana looked up to see the other members of the Sinestro Corps turn and surround their leader. They raised their rings.. and suddenly Diana realized that the aliens were surrounding _her._

_  
_Beams of energy lanced out, slamming into Diana and knocking her back into a fire hydrant, which broke apart and began spewing water into the air. More beams shot through the spray of water, wrapping around Diana's arms and legs and pulling her close, binding her arms behind her back and binding her feet together.

"By the way," Sinestro said, "As the new ruler of planet Earth, I'm setting up a new policy—no superhuman presence will be tolerated. The Sinestro Corps are the new rulers and peace keepers of planet Earth. You, Princess, are unnecessary."

"Go to Tartarus," Diana spat.

Sinestro turned to a nearby Thanagarian Sinestro Corps member. "Take her to the command center," he said. "She will be a useful negotiation tool."

A nearby Daxamite laughed silently and licked his lips."I can think of a few other uses for her as well."

Sinestro said nothing, and the Thanagarian took off, Diana in tow.

**

* * *

**

Superman scratched at his chin, a day of stubble making his face rough. Heat vision beams lanced out of eyes, burning new notes and formulae into the floor of his cell. Across the room, he could hear the heartbeat of his father, inconsistent and slow without his medication. Every beat made Superman's own heart pause with the fear that it could be Jonathan Kent's last.

Lois Lane, Jimmy Olsen, and Perry White were all breathing steadily, asleep. Perry wasn't young, but he was as healthy as the proverbial ox. Lois and Jimmy had managed to put on a brave face, but the silence was getting to them. More than once they'd told Clark that he was free to go, that their lives were useless compared to the lives Superman could save.

But Superman sat. Resolute. Unmoving.

A presence first pricked at Kal-El's senses, and then a voice.

"Incredible," it said. "The Man of Steel reduced to this."

Superman looked up and stared into the eyes of his arch enemy, wondering if he were hallucinating—or whether it was a trick from Darkseid.

"I assure you," Lex Luthor said, "I'm quite real."

Luthor stood on the other side of the field that kept Superman in only through the consequences of breaking it, and then he stepped through, the field apparently not even giving Luthor's presence a passing mention. Superman scanned Luthor with his more exotic forms of vision.

"You're an illusion," Superman said. "I can't see you in any electromagnetic spectrum except the visible one."

"You can't see me in that spectrum either," Luthor said, stepping closer to Superman. "You see three years ago I succeeded in my goal of taking revenge against Darkseid, but at a small cost. Trivial, in the grand scheme of things, but a useful commodity nonetheless: my body."

"You're a ghost?"

"In a manner of speaking." Luthor turned his back to Superman, only acknowledging him with the occasional glance over his shoulder. "I'm the disembodied sum of all of Luthor's thoughts and experiences, given coherence and form through the esoteric secrets that I learned beyond the Source Wall. I exist on a level that you can't really comprehend, Superman. I am a god without a physical form."

"What's your game, Luthor!?" Superman growled. "Why did you come here? To gloat about how you've managed to cheat death?"

"I've come to make you an offer," Luthor said. "To strike a deal. I'll get you and your loved ones out of this trap in exchange for a favor."

"What favor?" Superman arched an eyebrow.

"Not important now. Listen." Luthor indicated towards the cell where Superman's parents.

Superman gasped, ice-cold horror filling his chest. His father's heartbeat had stopped. He looked over to see Johnathan and Martha sitting up, not moving in the slightest. Superman blinked, and then realized that he couldn't hear his mother's heartbeat either, nor those of anyone else. Anyone but his own."

"The flow of time," said Luthor, "is easily restricted when one knows where gate control is."

Superman stood up. "Alright, Luthor. I'll help you..." Kal immediately felt as though he would regret those words.

"Excellent. Now look into my eyes. I have a gift for you like I had a gift for Darkseid. I gave him the Anti-Life Equation. Now you get to see its opposite."

**

* * *

**

When Batman had gathered his strike team along with Booster Gold, Skeets, and Robin, in the main chamber of Cronus' head, he asked for a rundown of what had happened. When Robin gave Batman the rundown of his confrontation with Ra's al Ghul, Batman's eyes narrowed, his mouth become a thin slit locked into an immutable frown.

"He's dead, then?" Batman said.

Robin nodded, offering no apology nor explanation.

"Bruce, stop," Black Lightning said, raising a hand in caution. "we make tough calls in the field. Ra's would have killed him."

"Robin knows better," Batman groweld. "He's out of control."

"What?!" Booster Gold blurted. "How on Earth can you possibly say that? He beat the big villain. The war is over. He probably saved countless lives. Robin should be laud—"

"Bruce is angry," Robin interrupted, "because this is the second time I've had to finish off a villain he should have put down years ago."

Black Lightning, Fire, and Ice, all turned and looked at Robin quizically.

"I guess he never told you," said Robin. "Four years ago, the Joker captured me, tortured me, and tried to turn me into his own sidekick. And then he did something stupid. He gave me a gun and told me to kill Bruce. I shot the Joker instead."

Robin lowered his head, not wanting to see the reactions of the others.

"Batman thinks I'm out of control because of what happened afterwards. The fact that I killed the Joker still haunts me to this day. Ra's death won't haunt me for five minutes, because I did what I did four years ago to take revenge. But after I recovered my sanity, I realized that sometimes, lethal force is the only way."

"That's not true!" snarled Batman. "There's always another way. Killing is the easy way out."

"Wake up, Bruce!" Tim stepped forward. "Ra's has murdered millions of people—far more than the Joker ever managed. You think for a minute he wouldn't try this again if he got away? The world is in shambles, there's no way to put him on trial. I made a call and we can't fix it now."

"Friends and citizens," announced Skeets. "I do believe it is time we got off this scrap heap before it crashes into the Earth's atmosphere and burns up. All in favor?"

"Aye!"chimed in Fire and Ice.

"One problem," said J'onn J'onnz. "The Javelin was lost to space when Cronus broke apart. We have no way off."

"Yes we do. Raven planned ahead." Robin stepped towards Batman and pulled out his birdarang.

"Robin?" Bruce arched an eyebrow. "What are you doing?"

"I need to cut the symbol off your shirt."

Robin did so, and tossed the bat symbol on the floor. He knelt down beside it and said, "_Abra puerta_!"

The symbol glowed, and a golden beam of energy shot up out of it, stopping halfway to the ceiling. Robin reached out and stuck his hand into the column of energy and it spread over his body, encompassing him and turning his form into a silhouette, which broke up and slid into the symbol, vanishing. The others followed suit, warping through the portal.

Seconds later they flew out of the Bat Signal, skidding to a halt in front of the young blue-cloaked half-demon Raven and the sorcerer Jason Blood.

"Robin!" Raven cried, rushing forward and wrapping him in a tight hug. "Think you were gone long enough?"

Robin looked up in the distance, over Raven's shoulder, to see dozens of points of light in the sky, energy blasting between them. A battle? But...

"Things haven't improved much since the Titans were destroyed," Jason Blood said, stepping forward and shaking Batman's hand. "Almost as soon as they ceased their attack, a group of Green Lantern-wannabes calling themselves the Sinestro Corps descended on the planet. Dr. Fate went to hold them off long enough for us to get to safety."

Black Lightning arched an eyebrow. "Safety?"

"Heroes all over the world have proven unable to defeat them. Superman is still missing, and reports say that Wonder Woman was captured earlier today." Blood frowned. "Where is Talia al Ghul?"

Batman turned. Talia wasn't with them. And Batman, usually the observant one, was not sure if she had disappeared after returning to Earth—or if she had never returned from Cronus in the first place.


	8. Eloi Eloi, Lama Sabachthani?

**Deus Ex Machina**

**Chapter Eight  
**

**Eloi Eloi, Lama Sabachthani!?**

_Apokalips_

The acrid smell of desolation permeated the air. Clark scanned all the way to it with his extraordinary vision, and saw only death and decay in the wastes of Darkseid's former planet. Darkseid had not been lying, then. Apokalips, always desolate, had been murdered. And Clark wondered with horror if the New Gods had actually done it, as Darkseid had said.

He walked down a dusty path and stooped next to the bones an armored being, one of Darkseid's generals by his dress. A Mother Box dangled from his belt, and Clark took it, the mechanical presence of the thought-powered machine buzzing inside his brain as he touched it.

"Is that what I think it is?" Lois Lane asked.

"It's your way home," he said, looking from Lois over to his parents, Jimmy, and Perry. "But not mine."

Clark took a step past Lois and looked up at the sphere of New Genesis looming in the sky above Apokalips. It's once-lush greenery was subsumed by a gray gloom that hung over the planet, and a red-haloed moon that Clark had never seen before hovered above the planet, misshapen... Like a giant skull.

"Is that the home of the New Gods?" Lois asked. "I always imagined it to look more inviting."

"Something terrible has happened," Superman said, handing Lois the Mother Box. "I have to find out what. I have to see if I can help the New Gods."

"But how will you get back to Earth? I mean what if they're all dead?"

Superman grimaced. "I'm sure this isn't the only Mother Box left alive. I'll find my way back. But I have to help them."

"We'll wait here for you, then," Martha said, placing her arm on her son's shoulder.

"No." Superman looked over at his father, leaning against Perry and breathing heavily. "No, dad needs to get home. He needs his medicine. You're all dehydrated, and you need food. Go to Smallville and get well. Metropolis isn't safe."

Lois nodded, reaching out her hand and aiming the Mother Box along the dusty path. She closed her eyes and pressed down on the button. A loud WHOOSH accompanied the burst of wind, and a Boom Tube appeared in the air in front of them. Superman waited until everyone had gone through, and the Tube closed.

He took off out of the atmosphere and headed towards the remains of New Genesis.

**

* * *

**

The Boom Tube gave a mild pop as it slid closed and, and Lois Lane turned to see an old white farm house a few yards away, a mailbox out in front of it with the name KENT tacked onto the side. She took pleasure in the quaintness of it all, and watched as Martha and Perry helped Jonathan inside. She looked down at the grass. It had never looked so green before. Jimmy and Lois started towards the door to the old house, Lois casting a glance at the photographer.

"Hard to believe," Lois said, "Seventeen years since Perry hired him, and we didn't notice that Superman was the guy in the next cubicle over."

"Oh," Jimmy said. 'I thought you knew. I mean his disguise was just a pair of glasses, after all, I figured you would have seen through it."

Lois gave him a sardonic stare.

"Yeah," Jimmy frowned. "I was totally clueless too."

The two went inside, where Martha led them to the kitchen so they could both have a much-needed glass of water. Jonathan Kent was sitting on the couch, his glass already half empty and his feet propped up on a coffee table. Lois sat down an easy chair while Jimmy and Perry joined Jonathan on the couch.

Martha made sandwiches and Lois thought Jimmy was going to down an entire bag of potato chip himself, the way he was pigging out on them.

"He'll be alright, dear," came Martha's voice, along with her hand on Lois' shoulder.

Superman's mother turned, and walked outside, calling out the door. "Mae! Mae! Where are you?"

After a moment, nothing happened, and Martha returned to the living room and sat down. Lois had the urge to reach for the television remote, but she feared to as well. Smallville was probably far away from the Titans or the Gods, but the idea that the attack was still going on just made her that much more nervous. Would it ever stop?

Just then, a small dog pushed the front door open and came inside, its face misshapen and its tail missing.

"Oh, Mae!" Martha said, "What's happened to you?"

Then the dog started melting. No, Lois realized, not melting, but shape-shifting, transforming from the form of a small dog into the form like play-doh, and from that form into something like a young woman. Color faded onto the dull pink blob and suddenly Mae the dog was a girl dressed as Supergirl, the misshapenness of the dog's face translating into a rather glaringly black eye.

She was not, as far as Lois could tell, the actual Supergirl—Superman's cousin Kara In-Ze of Argos, whose facial features had been rounder and stronger than the person in front of her now. But the costume was unmistakable.

"Ma, Pa, I'm so glad you're back!" she said. "I couldn't find you. I've been all over the planet looking for you! Where have you been?"

Lois just glanced over at Martha, not sure who this was or what was going on.

"This is Mae," she explained. "Short for Matrix. She's what Clark called a biological android that he brought back from New Genesis about a year ago. She helps Jonathan out with the farm work and such—"

"Not that I needed the help," Jonathan interrupted. "I just appreciate it."

"Where have you been?" Matrix repeated. "You had me… worried."

"We were kidnapped, Mae," Jonathan said. "Taken to Apokalips by Darkseid to keep Clark there."

"And where is Kal now?" she asked.

Lois winced. Superman was far away on the planet from which this Matrix creature had originated.

"He's gone to help people," Martha said. "Your people, Mae. On New Genesis."

"Help them? What has happened there?"

"We don't know," Jimmy said. "Clark thinks Darkseid attacked them."

"But that's impossible," she said. "You say Darkseid did this, and Darkseid did that, but Darkseid is dead. He's gone forever."

"Apparently not," sighed Lois.

Martha stepped up and placed a hand on Matrix's shoulder, the blue fabric rippling, in an unnatural way, belying the illusion that there was anything normal about the girl.

"Mae, what's this? Why are you wearing that costume?"

"I've been out," she said, a guilty smile and a flush filling her face. "Like I said, looking for you all."

Perry, who had until now been silent, looked up and frowned. "What's going on in the world? If you've been out there. What's happened since we've left. Are the Titans defeated? Is Metropolis still standing?"

The flush left Matrix's cheeks. "The Titans are gone," she said. "But… well… see for yourself."

Matrix motioned towards the television, which flickered on. Lois had been expecting a makeshift newscast or more-likely static, but instead, an image of the President of the United States appeared on the TV, with a LEX-News banner below it with a headline that made Lois' stomach sink:

**EARTH SURRENDERS  
**

The president spoke: "It is with the gravest of conscience and the most sober of minds that I speak to you today. Earth's heroes have been stretched too thin. The rebuilding of this planet will be sped immeasurably and the recovery hastened if you will accept what I'm about to ask of you. As of this today, the United States of America unconditionally surrenders to the Sinestro Corps. They will harshly deal with any resistance, and I urge all countries listening to this broadcast to do the same. Their leader, Sinestro, assures me that the current occupation of Earth is only temporary, and that once the planet is stabilized, the majority of the Corps will be stationed elsewhere in the galaxy. I do not condone any further metahuman resistance, because to do so would be to condone the senseless slaughter of more of our world's heroes, who fought so hard in the past days to rid us of the threat of the Titans of Myth.

Thank you, and may God bless America, and speed our recovery from the horrible tragedies that have befallen our planet."

Lois stared at the television, disbelieving.

But it was Jimmy who said what was on everyone's mind: "What the hell is the Sinestro Corps?"

**

* * *

**

_El Paso_

Jaime felt incredibly self-conscious at the dinner table, despite the pleasant smell of roasted chicken wafting up to his nose. He felt Traci next to him give his knee a squeeze, and he glanced over to her.

"What?"

"You're too nervous," she said tersely. "Lighten up some."

"Sorry." Jaime looked across the table to their guest. "I'm just not used to having primordial entities over for Sunday lunch."

Jaime's mother, Bianca Reyes, set a dish full of enchiladas down on the table and then took her seat by Jaime's father, Alberto.

"We're glad to have you Miss… Um… Death," she said. Indeed, the Endless had been invited over to stay at the Reyes' house while the war against the Sinestro Corps raged, and Brenda had even brought over a box of clothing from her unfortunate 'goth' faze as a freshman for Death to wear. Black, they found, suited the pale cosmic personification just fine.

Death smiled at Bianca, taking a fork and stabbing an enchilada, then bringing it to her plate. "It's a pleasure, really," she said, smiling. "I spend one day every century as a mortal anyway, so I figure it might as well be today. Besides, it's been ages since I've had a good enchilada."

"Um, shall we pray?" Alberto said. He looked over to Death. "Or would we be wasting our time?"

"Not at all," said Death. She bowed her head and waited for Alberto to pray for a blessing upon the meal, and then began eating as soon as he had finished.

A few moment's passed with some rather nervous eating, nobody talking to each other. Finally, Jaime's little sister Milagro broke the silence, pointing at the muted Television. "Look, the President Lady is on TV!" she said.

Bianca looked over to Death, as if for permission.

"Go right ahead," Death said.

Bianca turned the volume up and it became apparent that President Dibny was answering questions at a press conference. Most of them were along the lines of 'How long will the occupation last?' or 'Where is Superman?' One press reporter accused the president of colluding with the Sinestro Corps to save her husband, the hero Elongated Man, from having to fight and die at their hands. The president gave him a nasty 'I'm going to raise your taxes' look and denied the allegation.

The word MUTE appeared again in the bottom left of the screen, and everyone turned to look at Bianca, who was now leaning forward over her food and poking at it absently with a fork. She looked as though she would cry.

"It's just what you'd expect," she said. "We finally get a woman as president and the world ends."

Death placed a comforting hand on Bianca's, which still held the remote.

"The world isn't ending."

"Will things ever go back to the way they were before?"

Death looked away. "No, probably not."

* * *

_Washington_

Sinestro dragged the condemned man through the air to where the cameras were filming a press conference. The elected leader of the United States was announcing her country's surrender; no doubt many would be watching. It was the perfect place for Sinestro to make his first gesture of good will to the people of Earth.

Yellow beams lanced down from his ring, slamming to the ground and kicking up dirt. The press took a step backwards, screaming and aiming their cameras up towards the airborne leader of the Sinestro Corps. Sinestro heard several shouts of his name as he landed, then gasps and shocked exclamations when they saw who he was dragging.

He pushed the man forward so the camera's had a good view of him, his scraggly beard and black turban, his familiar wild eyes.

"This man," said Sinestro, "is a known terrorist. Several years ago he was responsible for a plot that took the lives of many people of this country. He used his power and his religion to spread terror and fear. Yet he did not spread this terror to bring order and stability, but to bring chaos and destabilization. His ends did not justify his means, and that sort of senseless violence will not be tolerated on Earth as long as I am in control over it."

Sinestro hovered up, a cord of yellow energy extending to wrap around the neck of the condemned man. Many of those in the press gasped and pointed, but nobody moved to protest or to stop him.

"This is a gesture of good will to the people of Earth who accept our authority."

The condemned man fell, the cord pulling tight. There was the _pop _of a neck breaking.

A terrorist hanged dead, the image of his corpse transmitted around the world.

Sinestro smiled. The people of Earth were not complicated. They were easy to please. He would have little resistance from this planet now that the superheroes had been captured or driven into hiding.

Things were going well.

**

* * *

**

Stephanie Brown's bag was slung over her shoulder as she entered the cool lobby of the Holiday Inn, remotely situated in a Kentucky about five miles west of the Virginia border. She checked her paper and headed down the hall towards where the conference room was located.

She pushed the door open and the smell of stale coffee drifted over to greet her nostrils. Three people were already in the room—two young women with blonde hair and a young man with none—all sitting around the huge conference table. Steph stepped inside and sat down at the conference table, dropping her bag in the chair beside her.

"You here for the Special Human conference?" one of the girls asked.

Steph nodded slowly, hoping she hadn't walked into a trap.

"Good, good," the girl said.

Just then the door opened again and a young black woman walked in, holding a clip board and studying the papers attached to it intently. Her brow was furrowed in intense concentration. When the young woman reached Steph, she extended a hand without looking away from the clipboard. "Natasha Irons," she said. "What's your name?"

Steph shook Natasha's hand. "Stephanie."

"Any.. _unique_ abilities?"

Steph frowned. "None."

"Former base of operations?"

"Gotham City."

"Spoiler, I presume, then," Natasha said.

The blonde girl on the other side of the conference table leaned forward. "Who?"

"My reputation doesn't really precede me," Stephanie said. "I work with Batgirl when she needs backup."

The girl had a catty glint in her eye. "So you're the sidekick of a sidekick."

"Leave her alone, Courtney," Natasha barked. "We need all the help we can get."

The other blond girl extended a hand to Natasha. "I'm Mia," she said. "Mia Dearden." She lowered her voice. "Green Arrow's new sidekick."

Soon after, two more showed up—one young woman with black hair who didn't say anything and gave her name as Ystina, and a British girl with long red hair pulled back into a pony tail. After the 7:30 deadline for the meeting had come and gone, Natasha walked to the front of the room and began speaking.

"Seven of us. The turnout wasn't as high as I had hoped, but not as low as I feared. I've been in contact with several members of our community over the past few days formulating a plan to negate the Sinestro Corps' advantage."

"Saying they have an advantage over us is a bit of an understatement," Mia observed.

"Yes, but it's not a hopeless one." Natasha passed around some sheets of paper that included a diagram of a Sinestro Corps ring as well as a lengthy explanation of its mechanisms. Stephanie didn't understand a word of the scientific explanation, but her eyes lighted on a simplified summary below.

_In other words, these rings are powered by the fears of their victims._

Natasha went over the basic principles, including how she had learned of the way the rings work from Raven of the Teen Titans, who had in turn learned it while studying a captured ring along with Jason Blood and Inza Nelson, the wife of the captured Doctor Fate.

"The idea of the mission I want to undertake depends on this fact," said Natasha. "Our goal is to remove fear from the human populace, thus negating the power of the Sinestro Corps rings long enough for us to fight back."

"How exactly are we supposed to do that?" asked the young man from before. "Fear is one of the most basic instincts of all life."

"That," said Natasha, "Is phase one of our mission."

**

* * *

**

_New Genesis_

Superman swooped down, arcing over the crashed remains of Supertown, scanning its collapsed buildings and damaged citadels with his X-Ray vision. There were corpses of Bug and New God alike, but many more ran through the streets, smashing vehicles and destroying property. There seemed to be no method to the madness, as if Darkseid had just unleashed a horrible virus and was content to sit back and let the New Genesians tear their planet apart.

The Temple of the Source in the distance was surrounded by a massive energy field, and Superman sped up, landing just outside it. Debris was scattered around the plaza in front of the temple, as though a massive battle had been fought there. He heard stone crack behind him and a foot fall hit the ground. Superman turned quickly to see Lightray running at him full bore, his eyes feral and drool falling from his mouth.

Superman froze, not wanting to fight back against his one-time ally.

Lightray's fist lashed out and slammed into Superman's face, sending the Man of Steel careening backwards into an obelisk. The stone monument cracked at the base and fell forward, tumbling towards Lightray. The New God caught the massive stone pillar and hefted it above him, flying into the air and then slamming the pillar into Superman like a massive club. The obelisk shattered and Kal-El slammed into the force field around the temple, a wave of Anti-Life energy rippling through the barrier and bouncing Superman off. As he got up, Lightray charged again.

"ANTI-LIFE JUSTIFIES MY HATRED!" Lightray snarled.

His fish pistoned back, but as he punched Superman caught it and swung Lightray around, slamming the New God into the barrier and then holding him in place.

"I will die for Darkseid!" shrieked Lightray.

"You're not going to die," Superman said. Lightray struggled to break free, but Superman flew forward, pressing the god against the Anti-Life Barrier.

More footsteps behind him alerted Superman to more presences. Dozens of figures, New Gods and Bugs, were stalking towards him, all with the hatred burning in their eyes. At the front, the tall bearded figure of Highfather, limping forward without his staff. His beard was scraggly and his clothing torn.

Superman closed his eyes and reached deep into his brain, finding what Lex Luthor had given him.

Luthor had called it the Life Equation, the opposite of the Anti-Life Equation. But that name didn't cut it for Superman.

Superman opened his mouth and out it emanated—light and music and memories of a sunny day spent with Lana Lang at the Small County Fair, the day Dan Turpin was murdered, of the day Lois Lane won her Pulitzer, and the day she lost her father and how she had used Clark's shoulder to cry on; of the day Kara In-Ze first set foot on Earth and of the loneliness Superman felt when she had gone away to be with Brainiac 5 in the future. Life, Superman knew, was not an equation. It was a beautiful, profound inequality that could not be expressed in simple words.

The New Gods' and Bugs immediately stopped lurking towards him and fell back, Lightray snarled and jerked, then collapsed, his head resting against the force field. Superman let him down gently and waited. One by one the New Genesians started to rise, rubbing their heads and groaning.

Highfather looked at Superman with a deep thankfulness in his eyes.

"We are indebted to you, Kal-El."

Superman gave a weary smile. "It's good to see you, Highfather, though I wish it were under better circumstances."

Highfather took a step forward. "Yes, but the planet may yet be saved. The Source is in the Temple, and It will know what to do."

Superman turned to regard the Temple through force field surrounding it.

"How do we get inside?"

Highfather motioned up to the sky, where the skull-shaped moon orbited New Genesis, spewing the power of Anti-Life down onto the planet. Superman studied it with his telescopic vision and saw a craggy surface full of caves and grottos.

"That's no moon," Highfather said. "It's a machine, an intricate god-machine that can process the Anti-Life equation."

Lightray stood. "Superman, shall we smash it? Get rid of that barrier and see what the will of the Source is?"

"I don't have a better plan," admitted Superman. He hovered off the ground and was soon followed by Lightray.

"Go with the Source, Sollis, Kal-El."

The two blasted off.

Back on the planet, Highfather lowered his head in shame.

**

* * *

**"Do you have any word of Barda and Scott Free?" Lightray asked as they neared the moon.

"Last I heard," Superman said, "They were fending off an attack by Marduk in Baghdad. The Old Gods have been ravaging Earth. Darkseid's attack is bigger than any one planet. He even told me that he'd destroyed the Green Lantern Corps."

"There's something that Highfather has never told you," Lightray said. "You know that Oa is the center of the universe. But there is more than one universe."

"Yeah, well aware of that," Superman said, recalling his battles with the Justice Lords, among other parallel universe friends and foes. "What has Highfather not told me?"

"Earth—it's special." Lightray flew ahead, turning around to face Superman and flying backwards towards the moon. "I mean _important. _Twenty-four years ago, there was a war, and Earth was the planet where the decisive battle was fought. Entire universes lived and died, and when the cosmic turbulence subsided, Earth had become the center of the Multiverse."

"What does that mean?" The two swooped down and landed on the surface of the moon. The gravity was light.

"Highfather never told me that," Lightray said. "But it has to be important. Maybe that's why Darkseid focuses so much of his energy there. Maybe it's not just because of you."

"I'll keep that in mind," Superman said. In truth, he didn't care why Darkseid focused on Earth—only that Darkseid's plans be stopped.

Superman's vision scans found a cave, and he and Lightray followed its tunnels deep into the moon, through dark corridors and crevices where the presence of Anti-Life was so thick that Superman felt as though he would suffocate. Finally they came to a massive mechanical apparatus in the core of the moon. Superman's eyes widened with horror. Screaming apparitions, souls of dead mortals, were streaming into one end, and the machine was torturing them, compacting them into nothing and using their energy as a power supply.

"By the Source!" Lightray exclaimed, flying down towards the machine. An arc of electricity flashed and slammed into his chest, blasting him backwards. Superman caught him before he hit the walls of the cavern.

"Darkseid has gone too far this time," Superman whispered. "Too far."

Heat vision lanced out of his eyes, tearing into the machine at the points from which the electricity had emanated, then slicing across the entire contraption, cutting a deep gash into the side of the machine. Sparks and smoke belched from the wound as well as from the gears and moving parts.

Lightray hovered by Superman's side and aimed his fists at the man of steel.

"Lemme give you a boost, Kal."

Beams of solar energy lanced out of Lightray's hands and into Superman's body. Before Superman could react, his heat vision kicked into overdrive, a massive arc of energy lancing out and blasting a massive hole in the machine that continued deep into the asteroid; molten metal and rock exploded in all directions and the souls of the dead scattered.

Several of them slammed into Superman, their mystic energies blasting him backwards. He felt the thoughts of Maggie Sawyer and Jose Delgado rush through his mind, felt their cries for justice, and knew that they were victims of Darkseid's plot.

He finally managed to turn his heat vision off long enough to assess what was happening. The cavern they were in was collapsing, energy still pouring out of the machine as the souls it was processing were set free. Superman turned and flew towards the outside, Lightray following him.

"We did it, right?" Lightray asked.

"I'm not sure," Superman said. "Something… something doesn't feel right."

**

* * *

**

The force field gone, Highfather and the other New Gods rescued by Superman had run into the temple, finding the chamber of the Source guarded by Parademons. The New Gods and Bugs quickly took them down. But when Highfather entered the chamber, his eyes widened in horror.

The massive slab through which he communed with the Source was cracked down the middle, the burning radiance of the Source extinguished. Highfather knelt in front of the slab and closed his eyes.

It was time. The end had truly come—the long conflict between New Genesis and Apokalips would end the way Highfather had foreseen a thousand years ago, the way he had been working to avoid ever since.

* * *

The cavern shook violently, stalactites breaking off from the ceiling and fissures forming along the walls. The rumbling continued, even as souls of the dead arced by.

"The moon is breaking apart." Lightray said. "You need to get out of here!"

"What about you?" Superman turned; something in Lightray's voice didn't seem quite right.

"Highfather has been in telepathic contact with me the whole time, Superman." Lightray extended his hands again. "He says that our world—the Fourth World, the world of New Genesis and Apokalips—is coming to an end. It's time for us to let go and rejoin the Source. It's time for the Fifth World to emerge."

Superman's eyes widened, a well of anxiety forming in the pit of his stomach. "You can't be serious."

"Take my energy," Lightray said. Light extended from his hands, rejuvenated Superman's exhausted body, filling his weary cells with life. Superman flew forward and grabbed Lightray by the wrists.

"Lightray, you're coming with me. We're going to stop Darkseid together!"

"Not 'we' Lightray said. "You."

The cavern exploded around them, rocks peppering the two and breaking apart. New Genesis loomed below them, ruined and grey, full of death. Superman was paralyzed; he felt helpless, and he had no idea what to do. Using the Life-Equation was draining—how could he save the whole planet?

"Look at New Genesis," Lightray said. "Its time is over. The Source is gone."

The moon exploded, a piece of the Anti-Life machine lacing out and slamming into the back of Superman's head, and everything went black.

**

* * *

**

A starship appeared beyond the skies of New Genesis; aboard, a lowly skeletal figure who had once gone by the name of Steppenwolf manipulated the controls. Lord Darkseid's machine had broken apart, its fragments slamming into New Genesis. The planet was breaking apart; soon it would fall out of orbit.

New Genesis orbited unusually close to its star, Empyrean, the incredible radiation and gravity negated by the reality-bending machines of Supertown. Now, though, it began to fall.

Steppenwolf activated a Boom Tube big enough to swallow the planet; then he sat back and waited. He had died for Lord Darkseid before, and now he would do so again. The ship was caught in the gravity well of the planet, and there was not enough power to get away.

New Genesis fell through the Boom Tube.

On the other side, Steppenwolf beheld the Source Wall—behind it resided the secrets of the universe.

Fire consumed the planet as it crashed. The planet shattered.

But much to his horror, Steppenwolf realized that even a planet crashing into the Wall would never be enough to destroy it. His last thought as ship began to break apart around him was that despite all his lord's efforts, Darkseid's plan had failed.

**

* * *

**

_Limbo_

The sensation of wind seemed new to Superboy as he soared over the landscape of Limbo Town. Dull and sepia as far as the eye could see, it didn't make for very inviting scenery. But Superboy was bored as he could be. His memories were fading; his emotions towards Wonder Girl—who had, if his own journal could be believed, had once been his girlfriend—were confused. It pained him to look at her and feel nothing, to have no memory of the time they had supposedly shared. They passed their time by telling each other the stories they'd written down—the stories of Young Justice before they were Young Justice.

Superboy swooped down when he saw a strange black movement, and as he lowered he heard the startled cry of a young woman. As he neared the movement, he saw that the woman was wearing an armored jumpsuit and being attacked by a moving, writhing liquid blob of darkness. She fired an arm-mounted cannon at it, and Superboy helped out, blasting at it with his heat vision. It jerked back, but made no noise other than the sloshing of liquid.

"Looks like you could use some help," he said as he swooped down, the jet stream behind him sending the goop monster splattering across the field.

He landed and extended a hand. "Nice to meet you," he said. "I'm Superboy."

The woman smiled. She might have been in her late twenties.

"I'm Amy," she said, taking Superboy's hand. "Thanks for the help. You're one of the kids who arrived when and when, aren't you?"

'When and when' was an expression the residents of Limbo used to denote some vague time in the past, as much as you could say Limbo had a past. Superboy had noticed that even the entries he made every night in his journal weren't as reliable as they should have been. Events that he had written about over the course of a week would, after several weeks had passed, read as the entry of a single day. As if time itself compressed the further back you went.

"I am," Superboy said.

"What was that thing?" Superboy motioned to the goo all over the ground now. "I didn't think there was anything dangerous or exciting in Limbo."

"There isn't," Amy said. "Or at least there isn't supposed to be. I'm a scientist, actually. I'm studying this black goo. Sometimes when there's enough of it in one place, it becomes animated and attacks."

"Where did it come from?"

"I'm not sure," Amy said. "It started falling into Limbo just before you all arrived. I've been analyzing it in my lab. It seems to contain a very strange, primal energy. Something unpredictable and… chaotic."

"Chaos…." Superboy said. Something seemed familiar, something he thought he should remember. But it was fleeting.

"I'll help you collect it if you want," Superboy said. It was really an excuse, he realized. An excuse to get away from Wonder Girl for a while. But he welcomed it.

**

* * *

**

_Earth_

_West Virginia_

Warehouse X, they called it. A building where the United States government stored the confiscated weapons of supervillains and alien invaders when the Justice League and STAR Labs weren't dissecting them for clues or science.

The seven soldiers approached, six in a Humvee and one on her winged horse. Steel had been elected as their leader, and had briefed them on their mission.

"November 1st, 1997. A rash of strange instances of people abandoning all reason and doing whatever they wanted to. Batman investigated. Turned out that Jonathan Crane—Scarecrow—was using a new reagent he had developed to negate fear."

"Without fear people went mad?" Squire asked, adjusting her beret. "But what about rational reasons for not acting like ruddy fools?"

"Well," said Steel, "it didn't make everyone go crazy. Batman was reportedly exposed to the stuff and managed to function. The problem was he had lost his fear of crossing the Moral Event Horizon and Robin had to tie him up to stop him from killing people."

"And you want to do **_what _**with this stuff?" Spoiler asked.

"Right now people want the Sinestro Corps gone. The Sinestro rings are powered by fear. My guess is, we take away the fear and we take away their power. What we're going to do is break into Warehouse 13 and grab some of Scarecrow's chemical."

"And then?" asked Speedy. "How do we reproduce it? How do we distribute it? What do we do if it works and we beat the Sinestro Corps? The population would go wild."

"We'll cover those parts of the plan when we get there," Steel said. "The important thing is, I have the antidote already, so we don't have to worry about a complete meltdown of global society after the Corps is defeated."

The Humvee came to a stop atop a hill overlooking the Warehouse, and Shining Knight on her magic horse landed beside them. Two enormous security robots patrolled the outside, of the building, which had been re-colored black and yellow in honor of the Sinestro Corps takeover of the planet Earth.

Sonny Sumo was the first to get out of the car. "Let's get this show on the proverbial road."

Steel and Sonny were the point men, with Shining Knight and Stargirl right behind them; Squire, Spoiler and Speedy, lacking combat powers and weaponry that defied the laws of physics, took up the rear. Speedy notched her bow with some explosive arrows while Spoiler pulled out a pair of nunchaku. Squire pulled a sword that looked too large for her to wield in one hand; she did anyway.

Together, the seven soldiers charged.

**

* * *

**

Fire and chaos abounded. Metal so hot it seared even Superman's hands glowed in the vast darkness of space. Superman didn't know where he was nor how he had survived the destruction of New Genesis, but he knew he had hold on.

There was a fissure in the Wall. Superman didn't know what the wall was, but he could feel deep within his bones that the integrity of the universe depended on the wall remaining sealed. So he held on, even though his strength was running out.

Light was shining through the fissure.

On the other side, he could hear music.


	9. Fear Itself

**Deus Ex Machina**

**Chapter Nine  
**

**Fear Itself**

_The North Pole_

"Progress, commander?" Sinestro asked, hovering down to the base of the enormous golden machine that towered above the arctic landscape. The machine was designed to sense the undulations in the fabric of the universe, the vibrations of which Earth was the focus.

"The machine is finished, sir," the alien said, saluting Sinestro. "I have a group of men using their rings to charge the generator, and then we'll be ready to activate it."

"Very good." Sinestro allowed himself a smile, then flew upward to survey the machine. It stood over 1000 meters tall, a massive vibrational tuning fork rotating at the top, acting as a massive antenna. The generator attached to the far end was surrounded by members of the Sinestro Corps not preoccupied keeping the unruly planet Earth in line; lines of yellow energy were streaming from their rings into the generator, powering it up.

Sinestro did not see the microscopic speck that streaked along one of those beams into the power core of the generator, and if he had, he would not have known the danger it posed to his plan.

The little speck waited until it was a good distance away from the beams of yellow light, and then it grew slightly, transforming into the form of a young man in a red and blue costume. Just a centimeter tall.

He raised a hand to his earpiece and tapped it once. "Professor Palmer, I'm in."

"Excellent," came the voice of Ray Palmer over the communicator. "Proceed to the main control circuit and contact me once you've arrived."

The original Atom, Ray Palmer, had been forced into hiding during the Sinestro Corps invasion. He had built a tiny control room hidden in his father-in-law's home, stocked with plenty of supplies, and contacted his young colleague, Ryan Choi, to serve as a field agent. The young man was a brilliant physicist already, and had quickly agreed to work with Professor Palmer. Few scientists had noticed the Sinestro Corps constructing their behemoth machine at the North Pole, and fewer still had the curiosity to discover its secrets—and stop whatever nefarious plot the Corps had in mind.

Ryan ran down the conduits of the machine, dodging arcs of electricity and blasts of Sinestro Corps energy that were still flowing into the machine.

"Professor Palmer?" Ryan asked as he ran. "Question."

"Yes, Ryan?"

"Is it true that you once rode between Wonder Woman's breasts?" He paused. "I mean during the Dark Heart incident?"

"Ryan, _focus_," Palmer hissed. "This is not the time for… personal inquiries."

"Sorry."

A few steps later, Ryan came across a massive array of circuits and space-transistors, arranged in columns that towered over him and plunged into the depths below him. It must have been three feet high, and with Ryan only a centimeter tall, it was quite a sight.

"Professor Palmer, I've made it to the core." Ryan jumped from the conduit he'd been running through down to the base of the core.

"Excellent," Palmer said over the com. "I need you to find the central flux control module. It should look like the ends of two trumpets were sliced off and connected to a bouncy ball."

"Uh, right." Ryan started running around the inside of the core, looking for the module.

"Professor," he said after a moment. "What if the Sinestro Corps rings can intercept a com signal like Green Lantern rings can?"

"Don't worry," Palmer said. "Thanks to my shrinking technology, the wavelengths of our transmissions are so tiny that there is no way for anything to interpret them. Anything except the transceiver in your costume."

Ryan exhaled, trying to release his worry and frustration. "That's not what I'm concerned about, Professor. I don't expect them to interpret the signal, I'm just worried that they'll be able to follow it back—to you."

A low grunt, almost inaudible, sounded over the com link. "That's a risk anyone takes when they fight a totalitarian government.," Palmer said. "Now have you found the flux control module yet?"

Ryan was about to answer 'no' when a bright red object shaped like the ends of two trumpets sliced off and stuck into a bouncy ball appeared from the other side of another regulator tower.

"Yeah, there it is."

"Good. Ryan, I need you to grow large enough to surround it in the mass-alteration field and then shrink it back down to your size. If I can study how the flux control module changes Sinestro Corps energy into usable power, I can design a weapon that uses their own rings against them."

"That would be awesome, sir." Ryan grew to about eight inches tall, then struggled up the regulator tower, then leapt from it over to the module. He wrapped his arms around it and then activated the dwarf star-powered shrinking belt, once again returning to the size of a quarter.

Now the question was, how was he supposed to get out of here without being detected?

**

* * *

**

_Virginia_

It can all go to hell so fast.

One minute, the attack was on and the robots were going down. The seven soldiers broke into the Warehouse and thrashed more security drones inside. Steel and Shining Knight were particularly effective, having both the ability to fly and the ability to dish out damage with an atomic hammer and magic sword respectively.

Then the Sinestro Corps had shown up. Three aliens armed with rings of the yellow light of fear. Three villains as powerful as a Green Lantern.

Spoiler was blasted back through several shelves and crashed into one of Crazy Quilt's massive Iniquity Quilts. She staggered to her feet and grabbed her arm where it hurt. She was bleeding. Laceration across the bicep. Might need stitches.

Shining Knight was knocked from atop her winged horse and sent plummeting into a dark corner of the warehouse where some of Toyman's toy soldiers had been animated and set to defend the warehouse.

Sonny Sumo and one of the Sinestro Corps members were locked in a grappling match, the young warrior's willpower the only thing keeping him from quickly succumbing to the power of the ring.

Squire and Speedy retreated together into the rows upon rows of shelves and storage crates. The latter fired a volley of arrows backwards at the pursuing attack drones, while Squire used her sword to cut through the ones in front of them.

Steel went up against one of the Sinestro Corps members and immediately found her own latent misgivings being used against her; a yellow doppelganger of her uncle appeared in front of her and began taunting her about how she'd let him get captured—possibly executed. And it did this even as it tried to smash her with its energy-construct hammer.

Stargirl might have fared worst of all, because when she tried to use the star-energy of her cosmic staff to blast away a Sinestro Corps member, the alien had lashed out with an energy whip and snapped the device in two. Stargirl fell, slamming her leg painfully against the side of a crate and tumbling the rest of the way to the ground.

Weaponless, she grabbed a nearby rod—the wand of the Weather Wizard—and blasted the Sinestro Corps member with 1.21 gigawatts of lightning. Then she took off running, zigzagging through the maze-like corridors of the Warehouse.

She skidded to a halt in front of a large crate with a tarp over it, stopping to catch her breath. Her leg ached, white-hot pain shooting up from the impact site and into her knee. _Damn it, Courtney_, her mind hissed at her. _Jack is going to kill you._

Above her, the tell-tale glow of a Sinestro Corps ring alerted her to the presence of her pursuer. She slid into a shadowy corner, knowing that the shadows were little protection against the detection powers of a Lantern ring. _He could scan the entire building in an instant if he wanted to_, she thought.

She could hear him humming, trilling a strange, whimsical alien song.

_He's having fun, _she realized. _Toying with me._

The alien continued along, shining a beam of yellow light across the walls and floors of the Warehouse. When she saw it coming her way, Stargirl dived out of the way and slid her back up against the tarp-covered crate. The alien went on by, and Stargirl gently pulled the tarp off.

A sticker on the side of the crate read: _12/6/03 – Royal Flush Weaponry_

Stargirl removed a royal-looking staff from the crate, hooking it to the spare power source she kept for her cosmic staff. It hummed to life. She crept around the corner, saw the Sinestro soldier hovering high above the crates and shelves, still aiming his beam in a narrow pattern.

_Treat this like a game, will he?_

She took careful aim, then twisted the end of the staff. A brilliant violent beam lanced out, slamming into the alien's many-eyed face. Stargirl didn't stop to see what kind of damage she did; she took off running, darting and weaving through corridors, realizing that she was getting dangerously close to the alien she'd just shot.

He surged forward, blasting wildly and nearly hitting Stargirl.

But he must have seen her form in the light of the blast, because he turned and blasted her square in the back, sending her sprawling forward. She would have been knocked flat on her face if another crate hadn't asserted its own inertia, leaping into her trajectory and breaking her fall.

She heard footfalls on the ground behind her, felt the yellow light before she saw it. She didn't wait. She whirled around, leveling the staff at his chest and firing again. This time he didn't react fast enough and got blasted back. There was a crack and chunks of his armor sprayed through the air.

Stargirl pressed her advantage, lowering the staff and blasting again at the alien's hand

Bones overheated and cracked. The ring on his finger lanced out of the beam and slammed into the side of Stargirl's staff, snapping it in two diagonally. She leaped back, and tried to jab the sharp pointed stick she now held into the alien's throat. A yellow glow appeared around him, the sharp point breaking against the alien's shielded-throat. Stargirl goggled to see that the ring had slid onto a finger on the monster's other hand.

She ran, rounding a corner but heard the alien swooping up behind her. She zigged right then zagged back down a different corridor. The alien shot by her, but turned and extended an arm, a yellow tendril lancing out of his ring and wrapping around Stargirl's ankles. It pulled her close to him, holding her upside down and dangling, her two eyes just inches from the alien's eleven.

"You have caused me pain," the alien hissed, the voice seemingly emanating from a thin membrane below the eyes. "It was by my right hand I slew a thousand fugitives and collected the bounty on their heads, and now it is burnt up. I will make you suffer!"

The Sinestro Corps member raised his right arm, and a yellow hand made of energy formed over the bloody stump of the one Stargirl destroyed. He reached out and touched her bare lower leg; unearthly pain shot through Stargirl's body, and she screamed out. He dragged his hand along the back of her leg, and the pain multiplied, every point on the surface of his energy hand sending radiant agony through her body.

He stopped for a minute, and Stargirl felt him remove the hand; still it burned, and Courtney wished her leg would just go numb.

Then it did, and she regretted her wish, because the alien's torture device next grazed her bare stomach, and another burst of agony and screaming commenced.

Courtney felt tears running down her forehead and glared at the alien.

"Ready for death yet?"

Courtney hissed, "Do your worst."

The alien might have smiled, though it was hard to tell given his lack of mouth. He reached towards her face....

And then all eleven eyes widened in surprise, a resounding BOOM echoing from somewhere nearby, though muffled.. The alien's torso seemed to distort, twisting in on itself as light spiraled out of the center, a Boom Tube opening inside the alien and pulling him, ring and all, through it's dimensional gateways. Stargirl fell to the floor, then looked up to see who her rescuer was.

Spoiler stood, left hand on her hip and right arm extended triumphantly, holding on to a Mother Box.

"Holy spacial anomaly, Batman," Stargirl said, standing and holding on to her belly where the alien had tortured her. "Where'd you get that?"

"Found it with some stuff from the Apokaliptian invasion three years ago. Her name is Sarah."

"You named the Mother Box?" Stargirl arched an eyebrow.

Spoiler shook her head. "Nope, the Parademon who used to take care of her did."

"Whatever. Let's find the others, we have to get out of here before more aliens show up."

"Couldn't have said it better myself."

**

* * *

**

_The Source Wall_

Superman knelt a little lower, his muscles screaming for relief. His hands felt fused to the cosmic metal of the Wall now. He needed rest. Food. Water.

He needed a hero.

Superman fought his pride. He won.

He started to pray.

**

* * *

**

If any gods heard Superman's prayer, they were not those gathered atop Mount Olympus that day. There the talk centered of something far more immediate, pressing, to their minds. Athena stood before Ra and Odin, Dagon and Marduk, Amaterasu and Vishnu—and all the gods that served under them, warred with them, or barely knew them waited outside the meeting place, the stone temple of Hestia.

"Zeus," announced Athena, "has been taken prisoner by the mortals."

"This is blasphemy!" cried Odin. "Are the gods trifles, to be toyed with by mortals?"

"Calm yourself, Odin," cautioned Vishnu. "We were born of the ingenuity of mortals, for better or worse. Perhaps we should choose to make it for the better."

"There is no better purpose for mortals than to serve at our feet," Ra declared, crossing his arms over his chest. Dagon and Marduk nodded their assent.

"Who careth how we were born?" Dagon added. "Mankind hath rejected us in favor of the One God, or no god at all. Shall we not do the same and reject them. We must leave them to their fate—and Zeus to his."

"Not all mankind has rejected us," observed Vishnu. "Nor has the existing rejection been entirely unwarranted. Is it not true that we usurp the worship due the Creator?"

Ra scowled—a difficult feat with the head of a Falcon. "Is any worship due such a distant and aloof creator, who neither fully solveth his people's miseries nor subjugateth their capricious wills?"

"It is easy to side with the humans, Vishnu, when you yet have many followers," Athena said. "What course my brethren shall take, I am not yet decided. I would encourage you all to consider wisely."

Just then, footsteps pounded against the stone path that led up to the meeting place, and the gods turned to see a youthful goddess darting towards them, her red hair fluttering. "Pallas Athena!" she called.

"What is it, Iris?"

"A new god has arrived! He is terrible and dark and wishes an audience with you."

Athena took up her shield and spear, inviting Ares and Artemis with her, to go down and see the newcomer.

But the newcomer could hardly be described as a god at all, for his body was corrupt and rotting, his armor tarnished and filthy, a jagged Omega carved into the breastplate. His skin was cobalt blue and his eyes spoke profound lies. Long silver hair flowed from his shoulders, but his scalp looked as though it had been stitched together around his skull.

Behind him, four great monsters stood, his apparent entourage.

"Who are you," Athena demanded. "Speak."

"My name is Atheos," he said. "God of godlessness. I was forged by Earth's greatest and most sinister minds to put an end to the god problem forever." He gestured to his companions. "These are my army, the Four Horsemen of the Apocalypse—Pestilence, War, Famine, and Death. We're here to commit genocide."

Athena nodded, then calmly stepped away and picked up a horn, blowing into it a loud clarion. "Gods!" she cried. "To arms!"

**

* * *

**

_Sinestro Corps HQ_

"So they got you to?"

The familiar voice jerked Batman out of his silent meditations, and he looked up with a growing feeling of anger and disbelief. Before him stood a Sinestro Corps member—Thanagarian, female, with fiery red hair and piercing green eyes.

"Shayera!" Batman growled. "What's going on?"

In the cell next to Batman Wonder Woman leaned against the force field that held her. "You've joined with them? You can't have—I thought—"

"I always back the winning side," Shayera said; but Batman could see into her eyes, and they conveyed a very different story.

"You'll never escape this cell," Shayera whispered. "I'm sorry, but it has to be this way. The Justice League is lost. They aren't coming to rescue you."

"You've already betrayed us once," Wonder Woman spat. "Wasn't that enough?"

Shayera threw her a warning glance, and she turned and thumbed to the cell across the corridor, where Kent Nelson sat hunched in a corner, surrounded by Nth Metal and without the powerful helm of Nabu, the symbol of his position as Dr. Fate.

"Your magically-inclined friend is scheduled to be executed tomorrow. If you have anything important to discuss with him, tonight would be the time to do it. And don't worry; there will be more justice on Earth under Sinestro's rule than there ever was with the Justice League defending it."

Shayera turned and left. Batman took a deep breath and waited for Wonder Woman's string of invective and Greek curses to subside.

"Diana, she's faking it," he said after a moment.

"What?"

"Shayera's a Thanagarian. It takes J'onn—a born psychic—an incredible effort to read their minds; I imagine it's all but impossible for a Sinestro Corps ring. She couldn't confide in us because the ring would understand the language she was using and warn Sinestro. She was speaking in code."

"You're serious?"

Batman grunted. "She must be in contact with some members of the League. They _are_ coming to rescue us and she _will_ get us out of these cells. When the time is right."

After a moment, Batman grinned. "You know, Diana, for the wielder of the Lasso of Truth, you're not very good at sensing lies in others."

**

* * *

**

_Virginia_

_Warehouse X_**  
**

Steel dive-tackled a robot guard drone, then wrenched its head off and hurled it at the reptilian Sinestro Corps member pursuing her. The alien batted the projectile away with yellow energy, and then sent a flurry of glowing spikes towards her. Steel dove out of the way, but one of the spikes tore through the armor on her foot, destroying the thruster that allowed her to fly. She cursed and hoped that he hadn't hit a hydraulic line.

Before she could get to her feet, the alien was right above her, and grabbed her by the arms. Yellow tendrils snaked out and into her helmet; she felt a surge of effort and her faceplate popped off, clattering against the floor; the cool air of the factory rushed in and immediately began evaporating the layer of sweat on her face.

The alien turned her over, his tongue flashing out to taste the air. "Delicious fear," he whispered.

"You're one sick mother—"

_THWACK. _Steel's insult was cut off when the alien's fist lashed out and hit her in the face. The jolt of pain wasn't as bad as the dull ache of her head that followed. She felt blood trickle out of her nose and wished she could lift a hand to wipe it off. All the while, the alien's tongue was lashing about, the alien taking sick pleasure in whatever emotions he thought he tasted.

"You really oughta taste the air behind you," Steel spat.

The alien's yellow glow flared brighter, his ring blaring a warning; but as he whipped his reptilian head around for a glance, a loud BOOM echoed through the warehouse, and a Boom Tube formed inside his reptilian body. The alien hissed a dozen curses as he was contorted into the wormhole inside him. It closed as he vanished completely inside it.

Behind him, Spoiler and five other soldiers stood, worn and weary, the towering Sonny Sumo looking out of place amongst the girls, even more so than Shining Knight's winged horse.

"Where'd you get a Mother Box?" Steel said, standing and reaching into a storage compartment in her leg armor. "I found the No-Fear gas."

"Good." Spoiler raised her Mother Box. "Then let's get out of here. To Fate Tower, Sarah."

She extended a hand and pressed the button, another Boom Tube formed.

Then a beam of yellow energy slammed into Sony Sumo, blasting him backwards into the portal. The others whipped around, firing any weapons they had on them at the last Sinestro Corps member, a creature that looked like a mime with fangs. But the attacks slammed into a yellow force field and fizzled out.

More security drones approached from their flank.

"Retreat!" Steel called. "Into the Boom Tube!"

Immediately Squire and Speedy complied, followed by Stargirl. Steel ran for it; Shining Knight cut a robot in two. They both reached the Boom Tube at the same time, with Spoiler right behind them.

The purple heroine turned and raised her Mother Box once more, aiming it at the Sinestro Corps member, who was flying towards them. Just as she depressed the button, a laser from one of the security drones sliced through the Mother Box.

Spoiler gasped and whispered "Sarah!"

Then the Mother Box exploded, blasting Spoiler backwards, a wave of quantum energy distorting space-time. Spoiler slammed into Steel, and the two of them tumbled through the Boom Tube together.

The Boom Tube closed, the seven soldiers safely inside Fate Tower. Steel got up to see Spoiler, her masked discarded, crying.

"Even though I only knew her for one chapter," she said, choking back her tears. "I'm really going to miss that sentient computer."

Steel arched an eyebrow. What did Spoiler mean by 'chapter'?

**

* * *

**

Hours later, Raven and Inza Nelson had prepared the spell that would distribute Scarecrow's toxin all over the world. Robin and Cyborg had taken a sample and were working together to come up with an anti-toxin that they could distribute once the Sinestro Corps were defeated; Robin knew there had to be one; Batman had used it on Scarecrow's victims twelve years ago. But they were having trouble figuring out how the toxin itself interacted with the body, let alone how to counteract it. Batman's notes would have been helpful, but the Batcave had been wrecked in the skirmish that saw Batman captured, the computer damaged beyond the Titans' capacity to repair.

While the two of them worked, Inza, Raven and the seven soldiers gathered around a bronze cauldron atop a large winding platform in one of the extradimensional corridors of Fate Tower.

"This," Inza explained, "is the Cauldron of the Winds. It was forged by demons one thousand years ago to spread toxins throughout the world. The Doctor Fate of that era defeated the demons and recovered the Cauldron, and it has been locked in Fate Tower ever since."

"Plot device, then," Spoiler observed. "Very convenient."

Inza looked at her oddly, but held the vial of toxin over the cauldron. She whispered several words in Latin and the effervescent liquid in the cauldron began to swirl around like a whirlpool. Raven reached out a hand and spoke a spell in the language of Azarath, and the contents of the vial began to glow. Inza poured it out into the cauldron, the toxin falling into the swirling liquid and getting caught up in the whirlpool.

Inza stepped back and lowered her head.

"It's done. Now all we can do is wait."

**

* * *

**

_Delphi, Greece_

Barbara Gordon stared at her computer screen, her gut twisting into a knot of worry and pain; the footage seemed as clear as day, but she didn't want to believe it. Barda and Mister Miracle, blasting their way through a Sinestro Corps guard post to rescue the captured Rocket Reds. And then Mister Miracle giving his life, vanishing in a massive explosion that took two Sinestro Corps members with him.

He was the god of escaping, but Babs didn't see how he could have escaped that. Two days and passed and neither Barda nor Scott had been seen.

Just then, there was a pound against the door to her hotel room, and Barbara got up, grabbing the crutches that supported her and her currently broken leg; the Titans' attack had been enough to bring her temporarily out of retirement, only to incur an injury that forced her back out of the game. She made her way to the door and opened it slightly.

She gasped. "Barda!?"

"Barbara!"

The New God pushed the door open and staggered inside, limping and holding her stomach. She did not look good; her hair was a mess, and bruises dotted her arms. She was wearing a traditional Greek dress rather than her typical armor, and it was barely a shade whiter than her incredibly pale skin.

Barda staggered and collapsed, and Barbara hobbled on one foot over to her, and practically fell down beside her, her broken leg banging against the side of her bed.

"Barda, what's wrong?"

"Don't have much longer," Barda said. "Elana, my Mother Box, said that the Source has abandoned New Genesis. The Fourth World is coming to an end."

"What is the Fourth World? Should I call a doctor?"

Barda winced. "From the start of New Genesis and Apokalips until now. This has been the Fourth World, an age of celestial gods. Soon the Fifth World will begin. I hope you're ready for it."

Barda laboriously pushed herself up with her arms and turned over. Babs could now see she had a deep wound in her abdomen, and she was clutching a small golden Mother Box in her hand. Barda handed Babs the device.

"You take her. She's ready for me to go. I'm ready too. I… I think that you'll be important to the Fifth World, Barbara."

"What about Scott?" Babs asked, already struggling over to the dresser to get her phone.

"Scott died in Russia."

The words hit Babs like a wrecking ball, and she clutched her phone tightly and waited for the wave of grief to subside. By the time she was able to crawl back over to Barda, the New God lay dead.

Elana, the Mother Box, glowed in Barda's cold hand.

**

* * *

**

_Limbo_

The pieces of Chaos gave the residents of Limbo Town something they hadn't had in a long time—hope. Because when the black sludge burned, it burned with incredible energy, and everything around was suddenly cast into a radiant array of colors. Something about the pieces of Chaos fought back against the suffocating, mind-erasing effects of Limbo.

Young Justice was helping Amy the scientist build a ship—a ship that could take them out of Limbo forever. And Chaos' remains would be the fuel.

Even Superboy was feeling better. He was writing more in his journal. He was remembering things better.

The night before they planned to leave, he and Wonder Girl kissed for the first time since they'd been in Limbo.

**

* * *

**

_New York City_

Zeus' head hanged lower, his eyes drooping. It had been weeks since he had tasted ambrosia, weeks since cool nectar had quenched his parched throat. His powers were depleted, his godly glow less pronounced. He had begun to understand what it was to be mortal, to some small extent.

In the silence of the Sinestro Corps prison, he heard everything. Tonight he heard voices—the voices of Sinestro Corps members plotting. And their words made him feel even smaller.

"Will it do the trick? Will it finish this monster off?" hissed one of them.

Another responded. "We believe so. We recovered it from the remains of a vessel that sank into the English Channel centuries ago. Excalibur, the natives call it."

"I don't care what the backwards apes here call it. If it will kill this self-proclaimed god then—"

"It will. It was forged for a king, a vanguard of one of their religions, to defeat supernatural elements worshiped by older, so-called pagan religions. It should have no problem ending Zeus. He's about as pagan as the gods of this planet come."

The Sky Lord's eyes widened, and for the first time in thousands of years, he knew true terror. In his melancholy, Zeus tuned everything out, not listening further to the conversation, nor the rain that pounded against the walls outside. Only to his heart beat.

"Why does the King of Olympus despair?" The voice was new.

Zeus looked up to see a man—a stranger—clad in a long blue cape, eyes covered in shadow and a small blue hat on his head. The stranger looked up at the towering figure of Zeus not with awe, but with compassion. Not something Zeus was used to.

"I have long called myself a god," Zeus said. "And now, here I sit, defeated, bound, and awaiting my own execution." Zeus stroked his long white beard. "I see no escape, little mortal."

"And what, Cloud Gatherer, would you do if you could escape?"

"I do not know," Zeus said. "I would return to Olympus and see if there is any place left for me. See if the new world has anything to offer me."

"Perhaps you have something to offer the world." The stranger bowed his head. "Incidentally, Olympus is under attack. You, perhaps, could turn the tide in that battle."

The stranger turned and walked away, fading into nothingness as he exited the room.

Zeus pondered his words, and felt the burden of his heart lifting. His restraints seemed less cumbersome, his predicament less dire. Outside, it thundered, and Zeus remembered who he was. In a flash of light, a bolt of electricity blasted through the walls of the prison and struck the restraints, shattering the shackle that held his left wrist. Another bolt arced in and Zeus grabbed it, transforming it into a sword, wish he stabbed into the restraint holding his neck shattering it as well. He cut his other arm free, and stood.

He still needed food, but the rain falling, the thunder; it made him feel energized. He had languished in self-pity for far too long. The two Sinestro Corps members who had spoken of his execution burst into the room, but Zeus inhaled deeply and then blew them away with a mighty breath.

He smashed through the wall and felt the rain pouring down on him. It was time to marshal the clouds. It was time to return to Olympus.

**

* * *

**

All across the Earth people stopped submitting.

An uprising was beginning. The rings of the Sinestro Corps were failing, and the invaders found themselves ill equipped to fight people with no fear. In Iraq, a dozen US soldiers ambushed a Sinestro Corps member with small arms fire as he tore down a mosque to replace it with one of the drab, nondescript, non-denominational worship centers the Sinestro Corps had mandated.

The alien was overwhelmed, his attacks doing nothing and his shield losing power rapidly under the hail of bullets. Once it was gone, the bullets quickly tore into his body, and he fell dead.

In Japan, Doctor Light and the Super Young Team ambushed a Sinestro Corps member who was in the process of arresting a mangaka that had made an insulting cartoon of Sinestro, drawing him like the Earth dictator Hitler.

Most Excellent Superbat only stood back and watched as Doctor Light and the other members beat the hell out of the alien. He was too rich for grunt work.

And in the Arctic, Sinestro learned of all this through his ring and snarled. His plan was falling apart—how had these humans out fought his men? He briefly wondered if perhaps what John Stewart had said was correct—was Earth too well defended?

But no, it was a setback, to be sure. But Sinestro still had options. Most of Earth's military weapons had been confiscated, and armed with those, even the malfunctioning power rings wouldn't be a fatal problem. Sinestro had the nagging notion that he should be afraid, but he soon dismissed it.

What was there to fear but fear itself?

**

* * *

**

_The Edge of the Universe_

Superman collapsed, the crack in the Wall expanding into an enormous fissure that emanated light and music out into the universe. Superman turned to try and fix his mistake, but he wasn't fast enough. His strength wasn't potent enough.

Light radiated out and consumed the Man of Steel—a column of luminescence that was running down a cosmic hill and straight towards Oa at the center of the universe.

In their captivity on the planet's surface, the Guardians of the Universe sensed it, and grew despondent.

The White Light had been set free—and what it would do to the universe, even the wisest among them did not know.


	10. It's Hotter Than Hell in Heaven Tonight

**Deus Ex Machina**

**Chapter Ten**

**It's Hotter Than Hell in Heaven Tonight**

**

* * *

**_Limbo_

"Laws of physics ruled unconstitutional!" Superboy called from the cockpit of the massive rocket. Half of Limbotown had been taken apart, piecemeal, to construct the missile, and dozens of Limbo's residents had crowded around outside the rocket. Young Justice had personally invited Amy to join their number—though she was a bit older than any of them, her scientific prowess had been instrumental in figuring out how to use Chaos' remains as a fuel source.

Wonder Girl and Miss Martian accompanied Superboy in the cockpit; Superboy was uncomfortable with the idea of having a telepath beside him and his girlfriend, especially when his mind was constantly drifting towards into the curves revealed by Wonder Girl's tank top, but he didn't say anything. Instead he pulled one of the levers that started the engine humming.

Merryman's voice crackled over the radio. "Superboy, the last of the heroes who elected to leave Limbo with you has boarded the rocket. You're free to launch."

Superboy smiled. "You sure you don't want to come with us, Mr. Mayor?"

"No, not now, son," said Merryman, his voice betraying a hint of sadness. "I would love to, to be honest, but I have a duty to my people. I hope that—if you do get out—you'll send someone back to rescue us, though."

"You can count on it," Superboy said, giving a 'thumbs up', then wondering why he'd done that, considering that Merryman couldn't see him.

"We're ready to go Sup—Conner." Wonder Girl beamed. She put her hand on the lever that would begin the ignition sequence. Amy called up an affirmative: everything was working.

"Lift off in four... three... two... one!"

Wonder Girl pulled the lever and a huge fireball exploded below the rocket, sending it careening skyward. Up, up it went, until Limbo below was a dim haze, and then nothing. Memory of it began to fade even as the ship left, and Superboy fought to keep his mind on where they had been and what they were trying to do.

"Engine holding!" Amy called.

The ship rocketed on; Superboy's mind drifted, with time and space seemingly losing their meaning and the white nothing that surrounded them dulling to a drab gray that threatened to consume his mind in boredom. He felt warmth against his hand and looked over to see a blonde girl clutching it with her own.

"Cassie?" he whispered.

"I'm here Conner."

The flight continued. After a long time, years perhaps, a voice crackled over the speaker.

"Fuel running low." The voice belonged to someone named Amy. Conner remembered that much. He didn't remember where he met her.

_Focus_. The voice was not audible, but it was no less loud. It was the green girl behind him. Miss Martian. Martian... Megan Morse. White Martian—the enemies of the Green Martians. J'onn J'onnz. The Justice League. Crisis. Darkseid....

"_Superman_!" Conner shouted, sitting bolt upright in his seat, not remembering having leaned back. Memories—stories—came flooding back into his mind. His senses came into sharp focus—the smell of Cassie's hair, the muffled conversations coming from the passenger section, the thump of Megan's five hearts.

He grabbed the control stick of the rocket and pulled it to the left.

"Conner, what are you doing?" Wonder Girl leaned forward.

"Telescopic vision," he said. "There's a spot of light, bright White Light in all this grey. And I'm aiming for it."

"You see something?" came the call over the intercom. Amy's voice.

"Yeah, it's dead ahead. Give me all the power you can."

Amy exhaled, a forced sigh. "Not much left," she said. "Are you sure?"

"Yes! Never been more certain! Do it!"

There was a muffled explosion and the ship blasted forward, the inevitable gray background growing brighter and brighter until it seemed like there was a fissure in reality—directly in front of them. Conner hesitated, not sure whether to slow down.

It was closer than he thought. The ship plowed right into the fissure.

* * *

The stream of Light unleashed from the Source Wall was falling towards the center—not the center of the Universe, though.

It arced around Oa and kept on going, its trajectory comprehensible only as 'down' when one factored in all eleven dimensions of the universe. The Guardians of the Universe were capable, with some difficulty, of doing so, and gazed into the beauty of the Radiance with awe and terror. The Sinestro Corps guards that surrounded them had no idea what they were seeing and demanded an explanation from the Guardians.

High above Oa, there was a flicker of color in the column of Radiance and a tiny sepia-toned ship sputtered out of it, reconstituted from the germs of ideas and manifested above the core of the Universe.

Superboy gasped, not expecting a planet to appear on the other side of the fissure—not really knowing what he had expected. The ship arced downward, breaking the atmosphere and plummeting towards the surface. It didn't have wings, he realized in terror. There was no way to guide its descent... unless...

He glanced down at Wonder Girl's safety harness; a beam of infrared energy lanced out of his eyes, welding the metal together. Wonder Girl gasped, but before she could demand to know what he was doing, Superboy punched through the cockpit shield and flew out into the thin upper atmosphere, holding his breath and grabbing onto the side rocket.

His powers... they were weakened. Not enough time in the sun. The rocket seemed to struggle against him, its inertia pushing so hard that it was all he could do to hold it up. He was afraid the air resistance would tear it apart if he didn't slow the descent or angle the nose just right. His muscles tightened, weary from his time outside the universe, his hand slipping along the side of the super-hot metal. Superboy focused, extending as big a field of tactile telekinesis as he could muster. The ship slowed for a second, then speed up again. Superboy cursed and thought he'd pass out.

Just then, the ship slowed again, but Superboy hadn't increased his force…

He looked over to see Wonder Girl holding the nose of the rocket.

"We do this together, you jerk."

Too quickly for Superboy's taste, the rocket continued to fall, his and Wonder Girl's efforts only managing to keep it from breaking to pieces. When they were just above the ground, Wonder Girl gave a shout and Superboy let loose a burst of tactile telekinesis as Wonder Girl dug her fingers into the metal and lifted, turning the ship horizontal and slowing it to a near stop, just before it crashed against the ground. Metal bent and twisted; the transparent cockpit shattered and cracked, and black slime sputtered from the rocket engines.

Superboy collapsed and fell back and lay on the stone terrace where the ship had crashed, staring up at the sky. The beam of White Light streaking through space above the planet continued on unhindered. Suddenly, a silhouette of a round head interposed itself between Superboy and the White Light. The half-Kryptonian gasped, and sat up, turning to see a fist with a yellow ring on it extended to his face.

The arm it was attached to belonged to a diminutive chipmunk-esque creature, clad in yellow and black armor. Its fur was jet black and its eyes glowed with an early yellow light.

"Identify yourself!" hissed the Sinestro Corps member, his voice surprisingly deep for a creature his size.

"Um… I'm Superboy."

**

* * *

**

Wonder Girl stepped up beside the Boy of Steel. "Who is this guy?"

"I am Damonk!" he said, thrashing his arms about and chattering his teeth. "The Sinestro Corps enforcer of order hero on Oa."

"Sinestro?" Superboy scratched his head. "Isn't Sinestro that purple guy that's always causing trouble for the Green Lanterns?"

"If he's the leader of Oa…" Wonder Girl looked down. "Hera! We must be in a parallel universe where Sinestro kicked the Green Lantern Corps out and took over."

Behind them, there was the sound of pounding on the door of the rocket, and it repeated several times until finally the door popped off and flew across the terrace, crashing into the colonnades.

Miss Martian joined Superboy and Wonder Girl, followed by Arrowette, Secret, Kid Eternity, and Amy.

"You don't look so tough," Damonk said, taking a step back. He formed a yellow scimitar with his ring and slashed at Superboy. Superboy shouted a protest and stumbled back, too tired to dodge effectively. Wonder Girl blurred forward, her fist slamming into the force field around Damonk's face. The little Sinestro Corps member's head didn't even move, and he swatted Wonder Girl aside with a huge frying pan—which he then turned towards the rest of Young Justice. Miss Martian flew back and up, blasting at the alien with her eyebeams, while Arrowette strafed to her right and knocked three arrows, while Amy broke left and fired her Mega-Rod. Aero-disks appeared beneath her feet and lifted her off the ground. Arrowette let her arrows fly, but like all the projectile attacks, the arrows bounced harmlessly off the force field.

Secret just stood still and let the frying pan come down on her, her gaseous form dispersing from the blow and reforming in the pan tray.

"What do you fear, little girl?" the chipmunk alien hissed, aiming his ring at Secret. The frying pan vanished and a yellow copy of Secret formed in its place, gaseous blades extending from its tail.

Secret's eyes widened and she flew backwards. "If I had a bladder, I totally would have just peed myself," she whispered.

"She's afraid of herself?" Kid Eternity asked. "Not a good thing to be afraid of."

He swept his hands in front of him and shouted. "ETERNITY!"—and suddenly General Robert E. Lee stood before him, along with a platoon of Confederate soldiers.

"Is that a giant chipmunk?" General Lee asked.

"Less questioning, more shooting," Kid Eternity said.

Robert E. Lee shrugged and raised his saber, commanding his troops to fire their rifles at the alien.

The bullets slammed into Damonk, driving him back.

Amy landed by Wonder Girl and tapped her on the shoulder. "Look!" She pointed towards the rocket, where the rest of the men and women they had saved from Limbo were climbing out of the rocket.

Suddenly, Wonder Girl's jaw nearly hit the floor. When they had been in Limbo, she hadn't recognized any of them. Now, back in the universe, her memories returned, she instantly knew several of them:

Alan Scott—the first Green Lantern. Power Girl, a cousin of Superman from a parallel Earth. Jack Knight, the man who held the title of Starman before Prince Gavin. Paul Kirk, the original Manhunter. Johnny Quick, the man who figured out the formula for super-speed. Rex Tyler, the original Hour Man.

"You young'ns look like you could use a rest," Jonny Quick said.

Young Justice stepped back and watched as Robert E. Lee and the Justice Society of America kicked Damonk's ass.

**

* * *

**

John Stewart heard the commotion long before he knew who was causing it. Someone was attacking the Sinestro Corps guards left on Oa. John only hoped that they weren't about to go from a sticky situation to the dark crevice between a rock and a hard place. There were worse things in the universe than a Sinestro Corps prison, like being slowly drained of your fluids by a colony of microscopic space vampires. John remembered that unpleasant case as he waited, the commotion growing ever closer, his shoulders growing ever tenser.

Soon, the form of a teenager in a scorched pair of jeans and tattered black shirt descended into the basement accompanied by a legend.

"Superboy—Alan Scott!" John stood up, walking over to the yellow barrier between him and the heroes. "I've not seen you since—I don't even remember."

"We've been in Limbo," Superboy said, his heat vision blasting the control panel for the force field. The field fizzled out and John stepped forward.

John arched an eyebrow. "Limbo?"

"You know those old Justice Guild comics you read as a kid?" Alan Scott asked.

"Yeah?"

"Remember how characters would sometimes vanish without a trace and show up years later as if they were never gone?"

"Yeah…"

"It's kind of like that."

"Okaaaay…." John blinked.

Superboy ran down the hall, blasting the force field controls on every cell that contained a Green Lantern. "We're freeing as many Lanterns as we can. What the heck happened here?"

John frowned. "Sinestro happened. He said Darkseid gave him the power to capture Parallax and form his own Lantern Corps."

"Darkseid…" Superboy thought out loud. "Omega symbols were carved all over Mount Olympus, and all over the cavern that lead to Chaos' lair."

"What?"

"Earth has been under attack since you left, Stewart." Superboy finished freeing the Lanterns in that cell block, and they all followed him. "We need to find your rings. The Titans of Myth, the gods themselves, and now the Sinestro Corps. It's like the entire universe is crashing down on Earth. And I bet you anything that Darkseid is behind it. Darkseid or his ghost."

"Also might wanna look at that column of White Light up in space," Alan Scott said, pointing up beyond the ceiling.

John paused. "Did you say White Light?" He took a deep breath. "This is bigger than I thought."

**

* * *

**

_The Etherverse_

_Mount Olympus_

Zeus stood, his jaw hanging open as he took in the carnage that raged on Mount Olympus. The vile deity that called itself Atheos—along with its minons—had run roughshod over the gods, and many lay dead. Zeus raged, swooping down into the fray, blasting thunder from his fingers and lightning from his eyes. The Four Horsemen were sent sprawling, and Atheos, locked in combat with Marduk, looked over his shoulder, seeing the Sky King swooping down from above.

Atheos pushed Marduk away with his battle hammer and then brought it down on the Babylonian god's head, crushing Marduk's skull.

He dropped the hammer and drew his serrated sword, then flew, his eyes blazing with darkness, towards Zeus.

"Marshaller of Clouds!" Atheos cried. "The king of the gods! I've come to destroy you!"

Snarling, Zeus formed a blade of lightning in his hand and brought it crashing down towards Atheos' head. The god of godlessness raised his own weapon, and the swords clashed, a burst of arcane power exploding from the collision and toppling statues that adorned the darken crest of Olympus.

**

* * *

**

On the ground, Ares lunged forward, blasting away the advances of Pestilence and Famine with a Machine gun, and when that ran dry of bullets he pulled out his mighty ax and charged, carving a deep gash into Pestilence from which toxic fumes exploded.

"Germ warfare?" Ares spat. "I _invented_ germ warfare."

Ares kicked Pestilence, sending the monster flying across Olympus; even as he did, arrows from Artemis and Apollo flew up and struck the monster. But meanwhile, Ares turned and swung his ax at War. The armored anti-god ducked, drawing a metal pole, more than a foot wide, triangular and rusty, and slamming it into Ares' armor. Ares staggered back, then slicked with his ax again, lunging into the blow. But War interposed his pole, and a sliver of metal broke from Ares ax as the two weapons clashed.

"How does your rusty, crude weaponry withstand the power of arcane steel?" Ares demanded.

"Foolish god," War crowed, his eyes glowing red beneath his helmet. "You've tried to refine the craft of slaughter for so long, you've forgotten. War is not won by the most intelligent or the most advanced, but by the side most willing to slaughter the enemy. Even in the wars that the modern man considers 'just', bombs and gas killed indiscriminately. My weapons are forged from the thought behind Hiroshima; my armor is tempered with the screams of Cambodia. What do you have, god of war?"

"I have—heard it all before!" Ares shoved War back with his ax, then whirled around, smashing the hammer-sided back end of the ax into War's helmet. The rusted metal shattered and fell away, revealing War's face to be a death mask, the face of someone caught in the trenches when the mustard gas rolled through.

War's eyes flared and he kicked Ares in the chest, the touch melting his breastplate and the impact sending the god flying backwards into a statue of Nike, which crumbled to the ground. Ares sat up and saw War aiming a crude bow knocked with three jagged arrows.

War grinned. "Be that as it may, I only tell you the truth." He let his arrows fly.

Ares closed his eyes and awaited the sharp pain. But it did not come.

He opened his eyes again to see a woman's silhouette standing before him, arrows piercing through her thin satin dress. His eyes adjusted to the radiance that surrounded her, and he knew who she was.

"Aphrodite!" he gasped.

The goddess of love and beauty fell to the cold stone ground, and Ares rushed over to her. Her dress was stained with dirt and blood, and her arms and face were marred with small cuts, but she remained beautiful despite it all. In her hand a small sword that Ares knew belonged to Athena rested loosely, stained black with her enemies' gore. His Cypris, his Urania—fighting, in spite of her calling being elsewhere.

Ichor flowed freely from the arrows that had pierced her torso, and she was growing paler.

"Aphrodite!" he whispered. "You should not have saved me! It wasn't your place."

"It's my place as your lover," she said. "What could be more beautiful than to lay down my life for the one I cherish?"

Ares heard the clank of War's heavy boots. "The whore sacrificed herself to save you," it laughed. "Saves us the trouble of hunting her down."

The god of war moved faster than he had ever moved. He only regretted that he was not holding a weapon; his gauntlet-covered arm flashed upwards, smashing War in the lower jaw and staggering him back. Ares reached into his cloak and drew his sword; he took a step forward and sliced into War's elbow before the monster could react. Its forearm was severed and fell to the stone, and it dropped its bow. Ares pressed his advantage, stabbing his blade into War's neck.

"You!" Ares spat. "You think that you can come here and usurp the position of the gods? You think that you represent war?"

Ares twisted the blade. "I am the GOD of war, and nobody takes that which is mine!"

War tried to respond, tried to give his rebuttal, but he could only gurgle as blood filled his throat.

Ares flicked his sword into War's trachea, then removing it for a strike that severed the monster's head.

He stared scornfully at War's corpse for only a moment, and then returned to Aphrodite, kneeling beside her. He could feel her life force ebbing away, and for the first time in eons, Ares had to fight back despair.

**

* * *

**

"So... Hungry..." hissed the huge crocodile-esque monster that was stalking Uzume. Famine had not eaten in minutes; he was so famished that he'd latched onto the nearest creature he saw and kept on stalking it, oblivious to other issues.

The goddess of joy stepped back, a strange blank look on her face, her kimono dragging the ground. "You will not find satisfaction of your hunger in my flesh, beast," she hissed.

"You have no weapons, you have no friends. You have nothing but your succulent flesh." Famine lunged, but just then a massive fist made of earth shot up and smashed into his face, even as a boot descended from above and smashed into Famine's face.

"She's got _me_," said Demeter, standing with a broad grin on her face, her hands on her hips.

"Another succulent morsel," Famine said, his lips dripping. "This one with meat on its bones."

"If you're that hungry, then by all means—" Demeter raised her hand, and suddenly plants—corn and barley and wheat—began to grow on the dirt all around them, some of it tearing through the cracks in Olympus' ruined walkways. "Eat your fill."

"Grains cannot satisfy me," Famine hissed. "Only the flesh of the gods!"

Demeter's eyes narrowed. "I said... EAT!"

Suddenly the grains flew off their stalks and into Famine's open mouth. The monster struggled to shut his jaws, but his gag reflex forced his mouth open again, even as his stomach began to bulge with its fill of corn.

The monster clawed at the ground trying to struggle away, but soon he was too bloated to move.

"A good show," Uzume said. "This would make an entertaining night at the cinema."

"Yeah, but it's lacking something," Demeter said. She snapped her fingers, and Famine exploded, tiny pieces of puff white popcorn flying everywhere, mingled with the blackened guts of the anti-god.

"Now it's a night at the movies."

* * *

Frigg blasted Pestilence backwards with a beam of concentrated love energy, but even her mighty powers as the goddess of Friday weren't powerful enough to take down Pestilence alone. The leprous monster shrugged the attack off and continued stalking towards Frigg, pathogen-filled slime bleeding from his wounds.

"Give in to the infection," Pestilence coughed, reaching out to touch the goddess with a necrotic hand.

Frigg snarled and drew her falchion, slicing the appendage off. A cloud of toxin spewed out of the stump, and a new hand grew in its place. Frigg coughed and took a step back, drawing on her powers to fight off an infection.

"Sorry," came a new voice. Frigg glanced to her right to see Apollo land beside her, towering in his masculine perfection. He aimed his bow at Pestilence. "I'm not down with the sickness," declared the Far-Shooter.

"It took you long enough," Frigg muttered.

Apollo smiled. "Must give my entrances dramatically appropriate timing."

"Shoot him already!"

Apollo let the arrows fly, healing arrows that sliced through Pestilence's tattered straitjacket and sent him staggering back. He tripped over a broken chariot wheel and fell onto his back.

"What is this?" Pestilence snarled. "These arrows burn me. Who has such skill? Certainly not you, Pheobus Apollo, the cold and distant one."

Apollo cocked his head to the side. "I know a bit about healing myself. But those arrows were forged by Athena and enchanted by Asclepius, so no, it's not my craft that kills you, beast. Remember that for any illness your dark heart can concoct, there is a god who embodies the cure. Now die, descend into the pit and never return."

Pestilence struggled to get up, but pure water began leaking from his wounds, the pathogens burning away. He collapsed, his flesh deflating as the sickness that empowered him died.

**

* * *

**

The final Horseman of the Apocalypse had turned to run, tearing down the winding steps that lead up Mount Olympus' great fortress. He glided over the landscape like it was nothing, his mind focused on retreat. His allies—all dead. How could the gods have mustered such efforts against the greatest criminal minds of Earth?

Suddenly, three figures appeared in Death's tracks, and the monster stopped fleeing.

"Children?" he whispered. "They send children to protect their flank."

Indeed, the figures before him were two young teens, one a boy and the other a girl, and a slightly older teen in a wheelchair. They were clad in red, white, and blue shirts respectively.

"We thought something might be going on here," said the young boy. He stepped forward, raising his hand. There was a small ring with a lightning bolt engraved on it. "Turns out the Wisdom of Solomon was right."

The monster extended his hand and formed a great black scythe.

Before he could swing it down, the children spoke.

"SHAZAM!"

Three bolts of lightning flashed from the ring, one arcing across the arm of its bearer and into his chest and the other two bolts hitting the girl and the boy to his left and right. There was a flash of light, and suddenly the children were replaced by Captain Marvel, Mary Marvel, and Captain Marvel Jr.

"Captain Marvel!? A mere child!" Death cried. He leaped back. Now that he had this information he had to survive, he had to tell Dr. Sivana, one of his creators. Sivana had fought against Captain Marvel for years! He had to know this astounding secret—

The Marvels said nothing, instead lancing forward, pistoning back their fists and delivering a mighty trio of punches to Death's head. The cranium shattered, and the Fourth Horseman fell dead.

The Wisdom of Solomon brought an appropriate quote to Captain Marvel's mind: "And the last enemy that shall be destroyed is Death."

**

* * *

**

It wasn't quite accurate, as Zeus and Atheos still clashed in the sky above Mount Olympus, golden lightning and blue waves of power streaking out of a funnel cloud. Around the two gods, reality warped and perception faltered, the strain of their battle too much for the minds of many—even among the gods—to comprehend. Athena alone among the Greek pantheon could comprehend the struggle in all its metaphysical intricacies.

She lowered her sword and shield. "By the Styx, Zeus is losing."

Shiva appeared beside her. "We must help him!"

"How do you plan to do that?" Iris asked. "I can't even comprehend what I'm seeing. It's as though the universe is protesting their battle."

Hades frowned, stroking his beard with an armored hand. "The universe does not like what it cannot easily explain."

Odin then said, "We've mortals coming this way."

The gods turned to see the Captain Marvel family, hovering up the walkways of Olympus, and turned to regard them. Several began murmuring amongst themselves, but none spoke until Athena stepped forward. She towered over the Marvels, and looked down at them with curiosity—and shame as well, shame that any mortal had seen Olympus in this state.

"What draws you to the seat of power in the magical realms, child?" Athena said, addressing Captain Marvel.

Billy Batson blinked, trying to clear his mind, and then spoke. "Zeus—the Wisdom of Solomon has told me that he's losing. But he's not at full strength. Some of his power is locked away inside of me—some of several of your powers are not at their full potential because we are using them."

Hermes nodded. "The Flashes got you your powers back, but without the Rock of Eternity and the Wizard to regulate the flow, you've taken more than your fair share. I've felt pretty slow myself lately."

"I've stored it all in this ring," Billy said, "but I don't know how to get it back out and send it to the gods."

Billy handed the ring to Athena, who took it and examined it. "This was forged in the fires of Mount Doom. Only there can it be unmade. No, just kidding, Hephaestus should be able break it."

The ring was given to the god of the forge and he led a small party of gods along with the Batson twins down to Hephaestus' forge, where the god tossed a dead Harpy aside and placed the ring down on an anvil. He took a gleaming silver-blue chisel from the wall and an ornate hammer from his work table, and then leaned over the anvil, closing his eyes. It seemed a solemn moment.

Then Hephaestus spoke: "Luck, be a lady tonight," he whispered.

He smashed the hammer down on the chisel, and chunks of the Sinestro ring sprayed all over the room, even as cords of raw magic twisted and contorted out of the destroyed core. One thread each hit Athena and Hermes, while many more arced across Olympus to where the various gods that empowered Billy and Mary were standing. More still flew off into the distance to return to beings that weren't gods, such as Solomon.

The biggest strand, however, arced up towards the sky, towards Zeus electricity coursing over the beam. Billy ran outside, looking up at the sky as beam broke apart into dozens of arcs of electricity and expanded, merging into the bright clouds that swirled above. A sonic boom rattled through the heavens, and the bright clouds grew larger, overwhelming the dark clouds, until a vortex twisted down from the sky, spinning and falling faster and faster until it slammed into the sacred temple at the top of the hill; all of Olympus rumbled from the impact and shattered marble from the temple blasted away from the building.

Billy ran up the hill, though Hermes made it before him. He saw Zeus now, kneeling over the body of Atheos, a golden sword crackling with lightning pierced through the dark god's chest.

"You can't defeat me," Atheos spat. "The thought of me is in everything. I am the fear in ever believer's mind, the conviction of every depraved soul; I am Xarxagas and Xaos, I am Cthulhu and Nyarlathotep, Asmodel and Maggedon--"

Atheos flinched, and suddenly a feathered shaft was protruding from his forehead.

"And you've got an arrow stuck in your skull, bitch," Artemis said, lowering her bow.

Zeus removed the blade from Atheos' chest and stepped back, nodding to Hades; the god of the dead stepped forward and picked up the god of godlessness by the mail shirt revealed after his breastplate had melted away.

"You're mine now," Hades said with a smirk. Fire swirled around Atheos and he vanished to the nether realms.

"So that's it," Billy said. "We've won?"

"Not without cost, young one," Athena said. "Come with me."

**

* * *

**

Ares knelt, cradling Aphrodite's head in his lap as Asclepius, his surgeon's tools in a bag by his side, knelt, working his healing magics and his master potion craft over Aphrodite's wound. His hands were moving with a frantic speed that no mortal could match, a precision greater than any machine—but Aphrodite was fading, her godlike glow growing dimmer.

"There's something here," Asclepius said. "Some poison so powerful that my magics are unable to stop it."

Aphrodite looked up at her lover Ares. "I guess it's time for us to part. I am far from pure of heart, but this one purity I do have: my beauty. That, I will grant to you all."

The goddess closed her eyes, and suddenly her dimming glow surged back, brighter than before, and then brighter still, until Aphrodite was blinding, brighter than the glow that illuminated the sky of the Etherverse. As the gods gathered around, a beam of light shot up into the sky above Olympus, the shattered into a sparkling fractal pattern that covered the mountain in light.

Billy Batson stared in wonder—and then he watched as the statues of the gods broken and desecrated began to mend themselves, every particle of marble floating back into place. The columns of the temples were made whole again, and the greenery began to bloom once more. The graffiti carved and painted by the in monsters that had overrun Olympus in the gods' absence vanished, the marble restored to its natural beauty. The entire mountain shone with its original radiance.

When Billy looked back down, Aphrodite's body was gone; only ashes remained.

**

* * *

**_Earth-321_

_The North Pole_

Sinestro felt the bitterness drain from his heart, replaced with a sort of ambivalent satisfaction. Somehow a component of the universal tuning fork had been stolen with the Corps standing right in front of it; Sinestro had received a nasty shock when the device hadn't worked at first. But once the problem was discovered, it was repaired easily enough.

The ambivalence of Sinestro's satisfaction came from the delay. Every moment through which he didn't understand the mysteries of the Multiverse was a moment in which is control over Earth was unraveling. The rebellion—aided by the disappearance of fear from the planet—was undoing much of the ground the Corps had gained. His men had traced the sudden malady to a chemical reagent spreading through Earth's atmosphere. They were working on an antidote, but time was not on their side.

"Activate the machine," Sinestro said, trying to keep the weariness out of his voice. A dozen members of the Corps extended their rings, using the energy to power the tuning fork. The lights and moving parts began to hum, activating the quantum devices within that began boring into the fabric of reality. The top of the machine, the two-pronged fork that gave it is colloquial name, began spinning… faster and faster. Reality seemed to bed around the zenith of the device…

And then the world went white.

**

* * *

**

The White Light moved with an inconceivable speed, flashing across the entire universe in a matter of days—all the way to an unassuming planet in a spiral arm of an unassuming galaxy. The column of light crashed into the North Pole, crashed into the tuning fork, and all creation groaned in protest.

Fractal patterns of light lanced out from the Earth, all the colors of the visible spectrum, combining here and there into other colors. And at some points—dozens of points in the heavens that surrounded earth, all seven colors of light met, recombining into the White Light. And from these combinations sprung worlds—new creations, planets from beyond the Multiverse, copies of alternate Earths that shone with the light of the sun in the sky above Earth, their gravitational forces ignoring each other.

Glowing beacons of cosmic power. Their energies stirred Darkseid's soul.

**

* * *

**

The book of Revelation speaks of a Bottomless Pit:

_And he opened the bottomless pit; and there arose a smoke out of the pit, as the smoke of a great furnace; and the sun and the air were darkened by reason of the smoke of the pit… And the demons had a king over them, which is the angel of the bottomless pit, whose name in the Hebrew tongue is Abaddon…_

The matchless forces which the White Light unleashed shook open the Pit, the runs of ancient Babylon crashing down into a hole that formed in the desert beneath it. Smoke began pouring into the atmosphere as a machine deep within the pit began churning out minions—Parademons with vicious visages and wings that beat like the sound of chariots: servants of the Most Wicked—Darkseid, the god of evil. Reborn from the souls of the massacre on Apokalips, the Parademons flew throughout the parallel earths that gathered in the sky and began tormenting the inhabitants of the worlds.

And the Doomsday Machine churned on.

**

* * *

**

With the planet rebelling, the Sinestro Corps was scurrying to respond. The first thing they had done was to take the military weapons that the Corps had confiscated from the various governments of the Earth and use them as arms against the rising populace. With their rings' powers ineffectual against the newly fearless humans, they needed any advantage they could get.

The second thing they had done was speed up the executions of the superheroes. No longer an effective bargaining tool, the heroes were now nothing but a liability. The Daxamite Corbat Struum, the leader of the Corps in Metropolis, had immediately ordered the one known as Kent Nelson—the wizard Doctor Fate—brought before the public. He would be the first to die.

Nelson was disheveled, reeking of days without a shower and having grown a scraggly beard during his captivity. The appointed executioner led him up the platform where a trio of Sinestro Corps members guarded the proceedings with the humans' primitive laser rifles. Their media utilities—'video cameras'—had been brought in, but when the news crew had demanded that Nelson was freed and attacked Corbat, he had killed them. They would still record the execution, of course.

They had to send a message to any humans still undecided about defying their new masters.

"Sir," one of the guards said. "Hundreds of… copies of the planet Earth have appeared in the sky above us. Orders?"

Corbat turned his head and glared at the white-skinned Brylyx. "Continue as planned. We'll deal with one mission at a time."

At that time, a human conscripted into the Corps' service entered. "Commander Struum," he said, "there are reports that monstrous demons have been spreading out from a site in Iraq and attacking civilian and Corps member alike. Some of them are on their way here."

"Do nothing until I order it!" Corbat barked. "Sinestro will lead us through this. Execute the prisoner."

The executioner wrapped a yellow energy-cord around Kent Nelson's neck, then lifted both himself and the condemned into the air via a platform of the same energy.

Corbat scowled. "Kent Nelson of Earth," he began. "You have been charged with sedition and rebellion against the Sinestro Corps."

An explosion rocked the building. Corbat ignored it.

"You have been sentenced to be executed by hanging. If you do not wish to suffer this fate—or a more painful one selected at the discretion of the commanding officer, you may renounce your position as Doctor Fate and swear allegiance to the Sinestro Corps. Will you renounce your treason?"

Doctor Fate looked up and smiled. "Do your worst."

Corbat nodded to the executioner. The platform vanished, and Nelson fell…

Just as an Nth Metal mace blazed across the room, snapping the energy cord that made Nelson's noose. Nelson slammed into the platform and exhaled hard.

Corbat jerked his head around in time to see the Sinestro Corps member Shayera Hol punching out the human conscript—and then his vision was blocked as Wonder Woman's boot slammed into his face and sent him staggering back into the platform. The other Sinestro Corps members moved to react, when a pair of Nth Metal batarangs slammed into their rings, slicing deep into their fingers and destroying the weapons.

Kent Nelson got up as Shayera helped him to his feet.

"Your timing could have been better," rasped Doctor Fate, his voice ragged from having his trachea half crushed. The energy that made up the noose dissipated.

Shayera glanced at Batman. "Bruce wanted to stop and get himself updated on the situation," she said. "Chaos is the general consensus."

"The Lords of Order will not be pleased," Doctor Fate said. "Pray tell, did you retrieve my helmet."

Batman pulled the requested armament from a bag around his shoulder, and Kent put it on. He rasped an incantation, and immediately, his filthy prison rags were transformed into the armor typical of Doctor Fate, his appearance and hygiene restored.

"Much better," he said, his voice back to normal. "Now let's save the planet."

Batman nodded. "Assuming we're not too late."

**

* * *

**

A flash of green light in the sky was the only herald to the return of the Green Lanterns. John Stewart, Kyle Rainer, and Alan Scott led the way, with Young Justice and the other heroes rescued from Limbo right behind them—and a cartel of other members of the Green Lantern Corps for good measure. They entered bedlam—hundreds of copies of Earth in the heavens around their planet, along with millions of Parademons pouring forth into the atmospheres of those planets. Some of the Earths drifted too close to others and whatever the barrier that protected them from the gravity of the others broke down—and the Earths along with them, exploding into showers of energy and rock.

"I think it's safe to say that all hell has broken loose," Superboy said.

"Broken loose and taken the gate with it," John agreed. "The White Light of Creation must have done this."

Wonder Girl hovered closer to Superboy and Green Lantern. "So these are parallel Earths? Like the one the Justice Lords came from?"

John Stewart looked down at his ring, then shook his head. "The ring says these aren't actual parallel Earths—they're _copies_ of parallel Earths. We don't have anywhere to send them back to—which means they're eventually going to break this entire solar system apart!"

Alan Scott hovered forward, his magic-based power ring flashing green fire. "How do we stop it?"

There was a silence so heavy that, had they not been in the vacuum of space, they could have heard a pin drop on Earth.

Then John said, "The Guardians are still working on that."

* * *

The psychic backlash of billions of people suddenly coming into existence had rattled J'onn J'onnz so hard that he broadcast a headache to everyone within a one-mile radius. The last son of Mars stood up, rubbing his head, aided by the new Supergirl named Matrix.

"Are you okay, Mr. J'onzz?" the biological android asked.

Parademons descended on the duo, but Supergirl dispatched them by blowing their heads off with heat vision.

"We need to get out of here," she said. "There are more coming—I can hear them."

"Wait," J'onn said. "The people on the new Earths aren't the only presences I sense on Earth. John Stewart has returned—as well as—"

**

* * *

**

Superman opened his eyes, his mind swimming through space and time and finally settling back into his head. He slowly sat up, expecting his shoulders and neck to protest, expecting his head to ache. But neither forms of pain came. He felt… good_._ Strangely, inexplicably good. He could hear screaming, he could hear the sounds of battle… but they were distant. Hundreds of miles distant, echoes of battles that had transpired an hour ago.

He could smell… hay, and apples, and cattle. He sat up, and realized that he was in Smallville. Dozens of people gathered around, staring at him in awe. Their heart beats were steady, as if they utterly lacked fear.

"It is him!" someone said. "It's Superman!"

Superman stood up, and forced himself to remember everything—the destruction of New Genesis, the Wall, and the music of creation on the other side. Now he was back on Earth, his clothing repaired and his body restored. He tried to estimate the time based on the position of the moon, but couldn't because of the dozens of other Earths in the sky around it.

He scratched his head. "Wait," he said. "What the heck?"

"_Superman,_" the voice of J'onn J'onzz echoed in his mind. _"I heard from Supergirl that you were on New Genesis. I'm glad that you've returned safely._"

"J'onn!" Superman said, ignoring the murmuring of the Smallville citizens around him. "What's going on?"

"_I was hoping you could shed some light on that. I'm contacting the Justice League. We're meeting in Centennial Park in Metropolis. We'll compare notes when you arrive."_

**

* * *

**

Barbara Gordon's skills were reaching their limit. She could only work as fast as her computer processor and her own brain could muster, and that was increasingly inadequate to deal with the chaos that was quickly overwhelming the world—_worlds_ actually, given the sudden appearance of hundreds of parallel Earths in the skies above the planet.

Babs kept sending sideways glances at the Mother Box of the departed Big Barda. Elana was glowing lightly, reaching out with her psychic draw and urging Babs to do something. Babs couldn't quite understand what, though. The Mother Box must have been damaged, because it wasn't making any coherent sense.

Then her computer flashed red, and Babs jerked back as a thousand evil ideas invaded her mind. Her body convulsed, and she blacked out for a split second. After a moment, she looked up, surprised to find herself conscious. Her computer was completely fried, with Elana hovering over it glowing softly. Babs felt the Mother Box urging her to take it in her hand. Babs did so, and felt information flowing into her brain—that a lethal level of Anti-Life had just spewed forth from her computer.

"An attack?" she asked the Mother Box.

No, it wasn't an attack, Elana told her. The Anti-Life equation was infesting the very air, corrupting all the energy around Earth. And it was too much—too heavy a dose to merely take away the will of the victims. It was living up to its name and taking their lives.

Barbara swore. "Is there anything I can do?"

Elana chimed an affirmative, and opened a Boom Tube in the middle of Babs' hotel room. It urged her through, and Babs emerged on the other end to find herself in the JLU Watchtower; it had been abandoned during the Sinestro Corps invasion and the computer screens were displaying a system failure error. The chaos in the Solar system had been too much for the Watchtower's computer.

The Mother Box in Barbara's hand spoke again and told Barbara to let her go. Babs did so, and Elana hovered over to the computer systems—and then merged with them in a flash of light. LEDs and fiber optic tubes all over the walls of the space station began to glow, and radiance poured out from the machinery. Babs limped over to the chair where Mr. Terrific usually operated and sat down. Light flowed out from the computer system even as a representation of the hundreds of parallel Earths appeared on the computer screen. The light formed a wireless headset on Barbara's ear… And suddenly the voices of thousands began pouring into her mind.

"Oh my…" she whispered. "Digital telepathy."

Barbara heard some of the voices respond, questioning where the new voice had come from. They demanded to know who she was. Babs thought about the fact that she had been coordinating operations from, of all places, Delphi.

"Attention all superheroes!" she said. "This is the Oracle and we are connected."

**

* * *

**

"Barbara?" Batman whispered to himself as soon as he heard the Oracle's voice. "Is that you?"

_"Present, Bruce," Babs said. "I'll be listening in here, but right now I need to coordinate the fight against the Parademons."_

Bruce hoped that she had somehow found a way to broadcast to individuals and not just revealed his identity to the entire world.

Batman was gathered along with dozens of other members of the Justice League in Centennial Park; J'onn J'onzz had been instrumental in getting them together, and even now they were delegating duties to the heroes that had arrived—remnants of the Sinestro Corps as well as Parademons were assaulting people all over the ravaged planet Earth. As if the world hadn't gone through enough.

Sudden gasps drew Bruce out of his internal monologue, and he looked up to see Superman, the sun behind him as he landed in the middle of Centennial Park. Wonder Woman and Mr. Terrific ran forward to greet him, and John Stewart wasn't far behind.

"We'd feared the worst, Kal," Wonder Woman said. "You were gone so long—"

Superman looked at the ground. "It's Darkseid," he said. "It's all been Darkseid from the start. He was the one who showed Ra's al Ghul how to control the Titans of Myth, and he was the one who gave Sinestro the power to forge his own Lantern corps."

Wally West was suddenly in front of him. "Do you have any idea what's with all these alternate Earths? Where the heck have you been, anyway?"

"It's a long story," Superman said. "I was taken to Apokalips…and then went to investigate on New Genesis. Both have been destroyed. The New Gods are dead.

"Not all of them, sadly," intoned a new voice, a strong feminine voice that resonated with authority. Superman turned, with the rest of the Justice League. Everyone recognized the newcomers, though nearly all of them held their tongues. They were twelve feet tall, clad in flowing garments and shining armor, and possessed an otherworldly grace.

"Athena!" Wonder Woman stepped forward and began to kneel, but then Athena stopped her.

Athena stopped her by kneeling herself. Wonder Woman's eyes widened in shock.

One by one, the gods stepped forward and knelt before the Justice League—Apollo before Superman, Hades before Batman, Hermes before the Flash, Hephaestus before Green Lantern, Ares before The Martian Manhunter, and Artemis before Hawkgirl.

Wonder Woman could only stammer: "W-what is the meaning of this?"

"The gods have failed you, your highness," Athena said. "For years we kept our shame and our secret concealed in the darkness of the past, accepting worship based on false premises. And then, when the day came that you needed us most, we were not fighting alongside you, but against you, driven mad by the machinations of our common enemy. A new being calling itself a god—with aspirations to be the only god—has pitted us against one another in an effort to corrupt and destroy us. His is a name you are well familiar with."

"Darkseid," Wonder Woman growled.

Athena nodded. "Our number has been greatly reduced, but our resolve has only been strengthened. We're here to repair the mistakes of the past. The gods are at the service of the Justice League. We will go where you command and fight this battle until the matter is resolved. The gods have elected me their leader, and this is the decision I have made."

Up in the Watchtower, Oracle took all this in, and sent a telepathic message to everyone: _Whoa._

**

* * *

**

Destiny, Death, Dream, Destruction, Despair, Desire and Delirium. They are the seven Endless, having existed since the dawn of time. Unlike gods, their powers are not dependent on belief or worship. Unlike gods, they are not limited by space or time. Unlike gods, their positions are not voluntary, but duties that must be executed.

So, great was the tragedy when one of those Endless—Destruction—abandoned his post and became known as the Prodigal. It fell to lesser powers to execute his duties.

The Endless known as Death watched from a high ridge on the bleak darkness of the moon as Parademons moved throughout the solar system, pushing planets out of their place and into a new shape. Finally, she understood Darkseid's ultimate goal. The shape of the fundamental nature of reality—the DNA of creation—was replicated in grand scale in the heavens. She could make out a massive triple-helix that wove in and out of the third dimension in ways impossible for mortals to comprehend—forming a funnel that led down into the Bottomless Pit on Earth.

To Babylon, where human evil was born.

Destruction, summoned forth from unknown realms, plummeted through the Helix, crashing through parallel Earths and shattering them. Death heard a cry of his rage from across the vacuum of space, and then he fell into the pit. Death was powerless to alter his course. Instead, she looked across time and space to the place where the Black Racer—the New God that had usurped her calling at Darkseid's behest—was reaping the souls of the dead.

Her battle was there.

The battle against Darkseid was someone else's to fight.

**

* * *

**

The Doomsday Machine welcomed Destruction in with open arms, driving spikes into his arms and nailing armor to his body, shearing off his scraggly beard and putting a cobalt-hued helm around his head. Beam of flaming plasma lanced out of one of the machine's arms, carving an Omega symbol into the chest.

Destruction cried out in agony, futilely beating against the oncoming tide of Darkseid's soul. His time outside the universe had made him weak.

A being born anew crawled out of the Bottomless Pit. He shed his old name, Darkseid, and took a new one.

"I am become Abaddon," he said. "Destroyer of Worlds."

**

* * *

**

Author's Note: Amy is not an original character; she was a background character with ties to Intergang in the Superman: TAS episode _Little Girl Lost. _When she learned that Intergang was working with Darkseid, she changed sides and helped Supergirl defeat them. Her obscurity makes her a perfect candidate for someone who would fall into Limbo, and sense this story takes place years after Superman: TAS, I decided that Amy had gone on to college and become an engineer before Limbo claimed her. She is also the Fifth World reincarnation of Barda.


	11. The Music Of the Spheres

A/N: Sorry it took so long to get this up. I'll do my darndest to have chapter twelve up by the end of the year.

Chapter betaed by Legend Maker.

* * *

**Deus Ex Machina**

**Chapter Eleven  
**

**The Music of the Spheres**

_Space_

The stars blurred into streaks of light as Death warped across the universe, her target looming ever larger in front of her. The Black Racer, a torrent of souls streaming behind him from billions of dead across the cosmos, was flying towards a planet breaking apart—the strain on the space-time continuum caused by the release of the White Light was damaging worlds millions of light years away. Such a narrow beam, but so much power.

It was all Death could do to choke back tears of anger.

All those people dying—it wasn't supposed to be the day of their deaths yet. She hadn't been meant to collect them for some time now...

Very little time from the perspective of the Endless, but lifetimes for mortals. Death whispered apologies to the dying planets as she flew past, then sped up as she neared (relatively, he was still a few parsecs away) the Black Racer. Then she smashed into him, her open palm slamming into his face and knocking him from his skis. The Black Racer careened across the cosmos and slammed into a black hole, disrupting the gravity for a dozen large planets that orbited around it.

Before the laws of physics could even moan their protest, he wrapped his hands around the singularity and hurled it at Death, the supermassive object slamming into the Endless' forehead and deflecting off into the darkness of space. Death recovered in time to block as the Black Racer brought a silver blade down towards her.

Death reached up and caught the sword, too stunned to move out of the way—and as her hands clasped the cold metal, energy flowed into her. She realized, startled, that the blade was itself the ankh that she had worn around her neck for eons, pouring her power into it. It was her symbol, her icon. That was how he was doing it, she realized. The Black Racer had glutted on her power, and was now using it in the service of Darkseid.

She felt the steel pull away, breaking from her grip, and found the strength to move before the Black Racer could attack her again. She darted to her left and felt space time ripple from the force of another slash. Death kicked off her shoes and they drifted out into the darkness of space; then, as the Black Racer slashed again, she dodged forward and down, letting the blade pass over her shoulder, then surged forward. She kicked off the smooth side of the blade—Death felt the cold metal against her toes, and then felt more of her former power surge into her body—and lunged towards the Black Racer. His eyes widened as Death's foot slammed into his face, staggering him backward.

"Little god," she said. "Poor little god, a slave to Darkseid's whims. I'm sorry this had to happen to you."

* * *

_Earth-321_

_El Paso, Texas_

"Now why are you going _towards_ the unstable alternate Earths again?" Paco asked as he hefted Milagro out of the car. She wanted to give her brother a hug before she went off to his possible death.

"Delirium showed up again," Jaime said. "It was like a dream or something, but I know what my dreams are like, and my dreams are never as weird as sharing one with Delirium was. She told me that I had to find someone out there or else all the Earths would collapse from the cosmological strain—or something like that."

"Be careful, Jaime," Milagro said, waving around her Wonder Woman action figure. Jaime leaned forward to hug her, and Paco handed the girl off to him. She weighed more than Jaime had remembered.

"I'll be fine," he said, putting his sister down on the ground in front of him. He knelt so that his face was level with hers. "Keep Paco and Brenda safe for me. Tell Traci… she snores. Like _really_ loud."

Milagro smiled. "Okay. But you'd better not mess this up and make the Earth 'splode"

Jaime nodded. "Yeah, sure. No pressure." He stood up, reaching out with his mind to the Scarab bonded to his spine. The armor crawled all over him and transformed him into the Blue Beetle. His rocket pack and wings deployed and he stepped away from his sister and his best friend.

"Hold down the fort. I'm blasting off!"

* * *

_Metropolis_

Babs Gordon had always had a bit of trouble with hero worship. As a kid, she geeked out over the idea of Batman and dreamed of following in his footsteps—a path she eventually took as Batgirl. She never once felt uncomfortable around the Dark Knight, even before she learned his secret identity. It was unusual for her to feel uncomfortable because of the presence of others—as though she were inadequate.

That was how the gods made her feel. They surrounded the Watchtower in a defensive grid, blasting the waves of Parademons that came near. The distraction the gods caused was only slightly less frustrating than being left undefended would have been, by Babs' estimation.

But she forced her discomfort to the back of her mind; she had a job to do. Oracle's voice came loud and clear through the digital telepathic connection that now linked her with every human being on the planet. "Batman, there are terrorists trying to break into the Israeli nuclear arsenal. I think you should take this one, because it looks like their being led by your old friends the League of Shadows."

Batman grunted, then glanced back at the assortment of heroes gathered in Metropolis. "I want Zatanna, Captain Atom, and Booster Gold."

Oracle thought the command to the Mother Box and it complied, teleporting the four of them to Palestine.

"Doctors Psycho and Poison are trying to resurrect Cthulhu in Rome. Wonder Woman, this one is yours."

Wonder Woman nodded. "I'm taking Gypsy, Vixen, and Blue Devil."

"J'onn, Beijing is being overrun by zombies. I understand your wife lives there."

"Yes. Send me there. I'll take with Red Tornado, Shining Knight, and Crimson Avenger."

Oracle had the computer comply. "John, Sinestro and the rest of his Corps are rallying over Toronto."

Green Lantern's eyes flashed green. "I'll need some heavy hitters for this. I want Steel, Doctor Fate, and Metamorpho."

"Done." Oracle typed in the coordinates on her keypad. "Flash, Captain Cold and Parademons are overrunning Keystone."

Wally West nodded. "Okay, Ralph, Gavin, and Todd, you up for this?"

"Hawkgirl, St. Roch is no more chaotic than anywhere else, and I think Hawkman has that covered. The Dark Wingmen are heading towards Oolong Island."

"That's definitely a problem," Shayera said. "Send me there with Johnny Thunder, Rocket Red, and Fire."

Once they were gone, Superman's voice rang loud and clear in Oracle's head.

"Why haven't you sent me anywhere yet?"

"I'm on it, Superman. I thought you'd want to see this. Hold on, I'm patching an image through to your optic nerve."

Before his eyes, the ruins of Babylon appeared, where Parademons poured out. In the center of the chaos, the armored New God stood—Darkseid—different, but recognizably himself. His trademark helmet surrounded a head that appeared carved from granite, glowing red eyes casting a disdainful look on the Earth below him; he was now enormous, standing five stories high. His armor, now cobalt blue, had a silver Omega symbol emblazoned on breastplate.

"He's back," Oracle said. "Reports on the ground say he's calling himself Abaddon."

"'Destroyer'," Superman observed. "No, like hell. Not while I'm around." Superman lifted off the ground and blasted off, not waiting for any allies to join him.

**

* * *

**

_Earth-181_

_Gotham City_

"Great Scott!" boomed a bombastic voice. "What in the name of Poseidon's beard are these things?"

The monsters had begun descending from the sky right after all the alternate Earths appeared in the heavens—before anyone even had time to investigate that strange cosmological occurrence, they were up to their necks in winged gray demons with glowing yellow eyes. Aquaman's fist pistoned forward and clocked a Parademon in the face, staggering the alien monster back. But it seemed like the Parademon was made of stone; even with Aquaman's super strength, the blow had barely phased it. Aquaman glanced at a nearby fire hydrant and reached out with his Atlantean senses, feeling the water pressure within. He extended his hands, and the hydrants burst open, the liquid arcing out and coming towards him.

"Arthur!" called Batman, his blue cape fluttering as he ran towards one of the monsters. He leaped forward, grabbing a Parademon's shoulders and rolling forward with it, tossing it into the air while he was on the bottom.

Aquaman formed the water he had summoned into a high-tension projectile and launched it with his telekinesis; it arced into the Parademon and the monster exploded into chunks of granite, showering the Caped Crusader with pebbles.

"Nice shot," said Batman.

"Outrageous!" called Aquaman, rushing forward and raising his hand to give Batman a high five. Batman arched an eyebrow and, belatedly, raised his arm and allowed Aquaman his moment of celebration.

"That's wonderful, Aquaman. We got one." Batman pointed to the sky behind them. "Now we only have three thousand more to go."

"Details," Aquaman said, waving a dismissive hand. He ran towards the Parademons, leaping into the air and then summoning more water from fire hydrants, turning it into a massive wave that the king of the seas rode down the streets of Gotham.

Batman, meanwhile, brought out his remote and summoned the Batmobile. As soon as he was inside, he hit The Red Button—and the Batmobile transformed into a massive robot. Batman pushed the controls forward and the Batmobile ran towards Gotham Square, its weapons firing at the Parademons that filled the sky. Explosive canisters and ice missiles intended to stop the cold-blooded Gordanians in their tracks lanced up and tore into the Parademons, but there were so many that it barely made a dent in their numbers. Some of the monsters swooped down, slamming into the legs of the Batmobile, while others grabbed the shoulder-mounted rocket launchers and ripped them off.

Batman scowled. "I'll have to add vandalism and grand theft to their list of crimes," he said in a deadpan voice.

The Batmobile-Bot toppled over and Batman ejected, his ejector seat itself transforming into a miniature version of the Batmobile-robot—a version that could fly. He hovered in the air, blasting away at the Parademons.

"These things are outrageous!" Aquaman called through his communicator. "I wonder what they're called."

"We usually call them Parademons," said a new voice. "Though right now I'm willing to just call them an annoyance." A familiar blue armor patterned after a Luche Libre mask swooped down, blasting the monsters with red energy beams.

"Blue Beetle!" Batman growled. "Why aren't you defending El Paso? And why are your eyes yellow?"

"Batman! Boy am I glad to see you!" Blue Beetle hovered closer to him. "How effective can a bright blue cape be at hiding in the shadows?"

"You'd be surprised," said Batman.

"Listen..." Blue Beetle formed a fusion cannon and blasted away multiple Parademons before transforming his arms into a shield and blocking incoming fire from their energy lances. "I'm not the Blue Beetle you know. I'm from a parallel universe—the world where all this mess started."

"By Neptune's nose-hairs!" Aquaman called. "This is an outright Crisis on Multiple Earths!"

"You don't know the half of it," Beetle said. "Listen, I was sent here because these parallel worlds are unstable. This place... is not the real Earth-181. It's a copy, a duplicate made when some cosmic energy hit the right frequency. There's no empty universe for you to go back to—and worse, all the parallel worlds are collapsing under the strain. The planets are going to explode, including mine."

"But that means billions of lives will be lost!" Batman shouted. "That's unacceptable."

"I know, but we've found a way to stop it." Blue Beetle hovered close to Batman so that he could see the look on the Caped Crusader's face. "I need to find a person from your universe—a person who calls himself The Music Meister."

**

* * *

**

_Earth-372_

_Washington_

Richard Lore detested politicians, though he was, in his own way, a consummate one himself. His latest plan to destroy the Teen Titans, for example, was a master work of magical cunning and political ingenuity. First, borrow some magic from a friend with plenty to spare; then use that magic to cast a spell on the human race—no, one can't kill them all with such a spell, that would require more energy than even Ithlian possessed—but to alter their physiology ever so slightly. Make them shrivel in pain when exposed to sunlight.

Phase two: appear on the world stage in human guise, with a startling plan to save them from their torment—blot out the sun with a permanent eclipse. Oh, there will still be enough ambient light to see where we're going. Sure, crops are no longer sustainable, but since when had human beings ever really considered the long term?

Phase three: when the superheroes—rightly—call you on the fact that you're a megalomaniac super 'villain' with a 'sinister' ulterior motive, accuse them publicly of being paranoid, reactionary, and out to get you. Remind the humans of the pain they felt when the sun was shining. _Pain_, one of the Titans argues, _is_ _weakness leaving the body_.

Perhaps this is the case for some. But with most humans, pain makes the will pliant. It's a phenomenon that a skilled politician can always use to his advantage. Blame the pain on someone or something you want to eliminate. Pain is a predictable thing.

What you have to watch out for is the unexpected. A skilled politician can take the odd turn of events and use it to his advantage, but it can destroy the goals of a lesser one. Dozens of alternate Earths appearing in the sky above them was most certainly an unexpected turn of events.

Richard Lore was already calculating how he could profit from it; perhaps he could rearrange the solar system so that the alternate Earths took turns blocking out the sun for each other; sustaining the ecosystem while allowing the Lord respite on one of the many Earths submerged in darkness.

"Give it up!" spat Raven of the Teen Titans, her hands glowing with magic runes. "We've spread the word. People know who you are, 'Lord'."

"Strangely, they still side with me. Heh. What fickle beasts humans are."

The crowd that had gathered to hear Lord's latest address to the United States Congress, as well as the Congressmen themselves, were divided in their choice of responses to this turn of events: some of them were rushing out of the Capitol in panic, while others stared on with rapt attention at the confrontation between political savior and superhero.

"He's a murderer!" Beast Boy called. "Remember the Lord of the Night? The destruction he caused in Jump City? This is him. He's so damn hard to kill that he's lived on, despite constant defeats and setbacks. Is this the man you want to uphold as your 'savior'? The Lord of the Night?"

Richard turned, glaring through his sunglasses, his jet-black hair framing his face. A dangerous smirk flickered across one side of his mouth.

"Improper title; there is no more _day_, Logan," the Lord said. "I will accept 'The Lord of the World' from here on out, however."

The Lord raised his hands. _"Kametish lehls becrulm aywa!"_

Like a clay shell, the human body of Richard Lore began crumbling, black energy coursing out from within, until the entire facade was gone and the enormous black-robed figure hovered before them, a katana burning with darkness in his left hand. From his head ten long horns protruded in a circle and his eyes were as black as a starless, moonless night.

"As for the issue of making a scene," The Lord said, "I've never been averse to spectacle." He slashed at Raven with the katana, and she brought her hands up, the magic runes forming a barrier between her and the blade. The force field exploded, and Raven was blasted backwards, slamming into the wall of the Capitol building. Beast Boy lunged forward, transforming into a massive brontosaurus and whipping his tail around. It slammed into the Lord and blasted the villain through the wall behind him; but shadowy tendrils were still attached to Beast Boy's tail, and he had enough time to gasp before the tendrils latched on and jerked, pulling the massive dinosaur backwards through the wall.

The ceiling of the Senate chamber collapsed, and Raven threw up a shield at the last minute to stop a chunk of sheet rock from falling on her.

Raven heard energy blasts and saw flashes of light through the hole; the other Titans had engaged the Lord.

**

* * *

**

_Earth-100_

_Berlin_

"Freedom Fighters, retreat!" the heavy, tired voice of Uncle Sam echoed through the streets of the city. Phantom Lady and the Ray flew overhead, with The Human Bomb blasting at German soldiers as they followed, firing their machine guns at the fleeing superheroes. The Human Bomb raised a hand and sent a blast concussive force in their direction, knocking the soldiers asunder.

"Overman is coming," Uncle Sam said. He took off his hat and handed it to the Human Bomb. "Get the others out of here. I'm the only one who stands a chance against that Kryptonian menace."

As soon as the others were out of sight, Uncle Sam took out a small chunk of metal—a piece of the Liberty Bell—and a stick of chalk. He stooped down and drew a circle on the asphalt, then put the piece of the Liberty Bell in the middle. Focusing his mind, he filled the circle with arcane energies and began drawing on what was left of the American spirit—battered and broken though it was after twenty years of occupation by the Third Reich.

"If only that boy had landed in America," Sam thought, staring up at the dozens of alternate Earths in the sky and wondering why of all the days on the calendar, it had to be the day of the attack on Berlin. Couldn't these cosmological crises wait until the war was over?

The Liberty Bell shard was now glowing with white light; when he picked it up and slid it into his pants pocket—it was cool to the touch despite the glow. Just then, Overman landed in front of him; the gray military garb of a Nazi officer partially obscured by the black cape draped over his shoulders. On his chest, a red lightning bolt symbol signified his allegiance to the German state.

"Your attack failed, sir," Overman said. His voice was a combination of sadness and anger. "A lot of good men, Americans and German alike, died today. I can... understand why you do not wish to submit. It is said that you are not even human. That you embody the spirit of America. And you are afraid that if the Reich stamps out the American spirit, then you will cease to exist."

"I'm also none too appreciative of totalitarian government or genocide, son." Uncle Sam spat.

"We built this society on human suffering, it is true," Overman said. "Yet can you not see that I'm working to repair these... tragedies? I have personally stood over the executions of those in charge of the death camps."

"But you still wear that state's colors," Sam said.

Overman looked at the ground. "Yes. As you wear the colors of a nation that engaged in its own harsh treatment of minorities—relocation of the Native Americans, enslavement of Negroes."

"I'm not perfect," Uncle Sam said, pulling off his long gray duster and tossing it aside. "But America never needed an alien overlord to tell it when it was wrong."

Uncle Sam rolled up his sleeves, first the right, then the left. He charged forward, throwing a punch at a thousand miles an hour. Overman's hand flashed up and caught it.

Sam gritted his teeth and kneed Overman in the stomach, then gave him an uppercut that lifted the Kryptonian off the ground.

Overman cursed in German and blurred forward, smashing into Uncle Sam with repeated hay-makers, driving the Freedom Fighter back into the wall of a bombed-out apartment. Sam fell, his back against the wall, which indented from his impact. Overman ran forward, bringing his fists together for a hammer strike, and Sam waited until he was right in front of him, and then raised both feet and kicked the alien in the gut, blasting him into the air.

Uncle Sam got up and ran towards him, leaping into the air when he ran out of street and getting ready to smash the alien down into the bombed-out apartment below. But Overman righted himself and reacted faster—the ability to hover being rather more versatile than jumping. Overman smashed Uncle Sam back the way he'd come from, slamming the hero into the roof of a tall office building.

Overman arced down, and as soon as he heard him land, Uncle Sam reached into his pocket and clasped his hand around the shard. It had grown warm.

"I'm barely trying," Overman said. "This is futile. Give up."

He took a step closer, and then Uncle Sam moved, whirling around and flinging the shard of metal at Overman. The alien's eyes widened, but before he could move out of the way, the shard struck him in the right side of the abdomen and tore on through. Overman snarled in a pain sharper than any he had ever felt, and collapsed to his knees.

Overman looked up in time to see Uncle Sam run at him, but couldn't move before the hero kicked him in the face and sent him sprawling backwards.

"It's over, Kryptonian," Sam said, breathing heavily. "Without you as the Nazi trump card, the resistance movements will eventually win out. The Third Reich will fade away just like all other would-be empires."

Overman tried to stand, clutching his wound, but he only managed to get up to a kneeling position. His eyes flashed red, but he couldn't make his heat vision burn. The pain in his body was clawing at his brain. It was such an unfamiliar sensation for the alien.

But then, Overman had help that he did not expect.

A gray reptilian monster the size of a man and gifted with wings slammed into Uncle Sam, knocking him backwards off the roof. More creatures swooped down, overpowering the hero until he collapsed under their flurry of blows. Overman crawled to the edge of the roof and looked down. At first he thought to thank the monsters for the help...

But then he heard the screams. All over the city, hundreds of the monsters were attacking... Killing. He heard people's cries cut short as their lives were cruelly ended.

He picked up; the shard of the Liberty Bell, cold as ice in his hand, and focused, fighting the pain long enough to force his heat vision to work. He aimed it at the bloody wound in his abdomen, and then bounced it off the shard to finish the job—cauterizing the wound. It would have to do for now, for too many would die if he sought medical attention.

Overman had a city to save. Perhaps then, he could finally die for his sins.

**

* * *

**

_Earth-88_

_Metro City_

"Nightwing! Hey, Nightwing!" Flamebird refused to stop shaking her mentor until he woke up, which took approximately thirty seconds. Nightwing finally sat up and began looking around., rubbing his head and giving Flamebird a signal that indicated he would respond once his brain worked out which nerves controlled his voice box.

"B... Bette? What happened?"

"We got hit by one of those beams of White Light... I think we're on one of the alternate Earths."

Dick looked around. The two of them were on a peninsula of low flat land surrounded by a large harbor. Dick tried to figure out what city he was looking at, but he was getting mixed signals—the massive sword-bearing turquoise statue in the harbor suggested Gotham, but the buildings in the skyline were wrong—too many modern skyscrapers, not enough neo-gothic architecture.

"It's like Metropolis and Gotham City have been mashed together," Flamebird said. Dick had to agree.

A hiss followed by footsteps drew the two heroes' attention, and the turned to see themselves standing before a blue-skinned man with flowing white hair. He wore a black robe, hovering off the ground with the power of a black ring.

"Ah," the man smiled, revealing rotten-looking teeth. "New superheroes to add to my collection. Attack, my minions!"

He raised his ring, and it flashed with black energy—and suddenly dozens of arms shot out of the ground, skeletons and corpses clawing their way out onto the ground. Flamebird and Nightwing both stepped back into defensive postures and drew their weapons.

"Who _are_ you?" Flamebird demanded as she stabbed one of the zombies with her sai… or attempted to. The weapon just sort of drove it back a bit, as if there was a protective bubble around the monster.

"You do not know of me? I am Ganthet, The Black Guardian. I come from the distant planet Oa, the new Vanguard of this galaxy's true ruler—the undead planet Nekro! All hail Nekro, bringer of the Blackest Day!"

Nightwing and Flamebird looked at each other and arched an eyebrow apiece.

Then the zombies lunged forward, and the two heroes sprang back, deflecting the swipes of the zombies' claws and smashing into them with their weapons. The black energy field around the zombies that seemed to be animating them also deflected the blows of Flamebird's sai and Nightwing's escrima sticks. Slowly the zombies drove them backward until they were standing at the edge of a cliff overlooking the bay of the mysterious conglomerated city.

Just then, energy blasts rang out, slamming into the zombies and sending dirt blasting everywhere, along with zombie gore. The Black Guardian tore his eyes away from his victims and looked up, prompting Flamebird and Nightwing to do the same—and there, on a winged horse and brandishing a high-tech looking lance, sat Theodore Roosevelt.

"Tally ho, heroes!" cried the former President. "Allow me to assist you!"

Roosevelt swooped down, his flying white stallion slamming into the ground in front of them. Roosevelt jumped off and tossed a pair of pistols to Flamebird and Nightwing—energy pistols that looked more like high-tech hairdryers than weapons.

"Well what are you waiting for?" Roosevelt demanded. "Shoot the bastards! The Golden Light of Life is the only thing that can penetrate the zombies' shield."

Nightwing and Flamebird ran to the other side of the horse and began firing their weapons into the zombie hordes, and this time the attacks didn't just bounce off. The golden light tore into the zombies, and once enough flesh was destroyed the monsters collapsed to the ground and stopped moving.

"That's the ticket!" Roosevelt called. Then he paused, his eyes widening briefly, and he put one hand up to his left ear. He nodded, then looked back at the two erstwhile heroes. "Franklin just radioed me; George' n' Abe should be here any minute."

Before Flamebird could process this news, a zombie grabbed her and tackled her to the ground, and the force of the impact jarred the pistol from her grip; it went tumbling along the grass. She didn't have time to reach for it, because the zombie began trying to bite open her neck with its rotten teeth. Flamebird grabbed its necrotic head and pushed it away, but it kept struggling, trying to break her grip and force its incisors through her flesh.

Then a glowing yellow blade flashed from above her, and the zombie's head fell to the side. Flamebird climbed to her feet in time to see that her rescuer was none other than George Washington, a glowing rapier in hand.

A pair of gunshots rang out, and she jerked her head around to see Nightwing double teaming the Black Guardian with none other than Abraham Lincoln, the bearded president dual wielding what appeared to be two classic forty-five caliber revolvers. They too glowed with the Golden Light, and were putting zombies down faster than Nightwing's laser pistol.

Soon, all the zombies were lying motionless on the ground, and the Black Guardian was shaking his fist in anger.

"Accursed androids! You'll pay for this!" The Guardian raised his fist and his black ring surrounded him with a transparent field of dark energy that carried him up and away faster than the presidents could pursue.

Nightwing and Flamebird regrouped, and the three presidents approached them. Washington offered a hand, which Nightwing shook, his face still bearing a confused look.

"Who are you guys?" he asked after a moment.

"See, ole' Benjamin was right," Teddy said. "They're from one of the parallel Earths that appeared in the sky. They have no idea who we are—we, former presidents of the United States!"

Flamebird arched an eyebrow. "We know that!" she said. "But… you guys are supposed to be dead, not fighting crime in the 21st century!"

"Oh, that," Abraham Lincoln said. "Well, it's a long story. But most people know us as the Liberty League of America."

"We're what you call Androids," Washington said. "I don't really understand the science behind it, but the short story is that a half-score and seven years ago, the famous roboteer Will Magnus build a series of Androids programmed to impersonate the people he considered the greatest presidents in his history. I make no claims to such greatness, of course, but Will thinks differently. At any rate, there was a magical accident and our souls were summoned from beyond the Great Veil and into these Androids. Eventually we decided that we could do some good in the world and we teamed up to become the Liberty League."

"Oh crap!" Flamebird shouted.

"Why, such language," Roosevelt said. "Most unbecoming of such a lovely young lady."

"Look!" Flamebird pointed skyward, just in time to see a black cloud descending—not a cloud of zombies, but of something much worse. "Parademons!"

Washington drew his rapier again and turned to face them. "Liberty League!" he cried, mounting his own flying horse Glamdring. "To arms!"

**

* * *

**

_Earth-181_

_Blackgate Prison_

"_Alert! Batman and Blue Beetle have broken into the facility! Be on guard; they are armed and extremely dangerous."_

The message blared over the speaker system of the prison, punctuated by the klaxon of the alarm system. Bill wasn't sure why superheroes were breaking into a prison, but he grabbed his high-tech laser rifle regardless and darted down the all. He didn't get very far, though; he slammed right into a blue-gloved fist and saw stars, then nothing.

Batman grabbed him and lowered him to the ground, using his own cuffs to fasten his hands together and then stuffing him into the security checkpoint from which he had emerged.

"The Music Meister's cell is just down this hall. If you're wrong—or lying—about him being the only way to save the Multiverse, I will find you and destroy you, you know that, right?"

Blue Beetle gulped. "After seeing you take out a tank with your bare hands, the Scarab has classified you as a Class-Eleven Threat."

Batman-181 arched an eyebrow under his mask. "What's class eleven?"

"'Do Not Engage Without Full Armada'," Beetle answered.

The Caped Crusader flashed a satisfied-smile. The two of them found themselves at the end of the hall. A high-tech steel door at the end of the hall blocked their view, and a small plate on the metal read STEPHENS, ALBUS – THE MUSIC MESITER.

Batman glanced at Blue Beetle, and the young hero motioned for him to stand back; his outstretched arm converted into a massive heat cannon that blasted red beam, melting a massive hole in the door. Beetle didn't even wait for the steel to cool before he ran inside. He grabbed the small red-haired man in the cell and dragged him out.

"What on Earth is—Oh, my, Batman!"

When in the light, Beetle noticed that the prisoner had a small patch on his neck that was getting electricity readings from the Scarab; and his voice sounded somewhat mechanical, distorted. The Scarab's system finished its scan and informed him that the patch was the control chip for a tracheal implant that would prevent his vocal cords from projecting beyond certain pitches.

"They keep him in a sound-proof cell and install a machine to make sure he can't sing," Batman growled. "Because this man is dangerous. He has the power to mind control people with his voice and draw them into his perfidious performance."

"What's all this about!" demanded the Music Meister, his voice raising in pitch slightly and suddenly taking a hollow mechanical tone as he reached _about._

"We're busting you out of jail," Beetle said. "Because we need your vocal cords to save the planet!"

**

* * *

**

_Earth-372_

_Washington, DC_

The Teen Titans and the Lord of the Night—doomed, it sometimes seemed, to be persistent foes—continued to battle across the courtyard in front of the Capital building. The eclipse in the sky above blocked the rays of the sun from hitting the lord and cast a dim shadow over the entire planet—though the presence of extra planet Earths in the sky increased the brightness somewhat, the bright blue glow of dozens of Earths giving an odd mood to the battle.

The Lord slashed his hand and dozens of shadow spikes lanced out, slamming into Superboy and driving him backwards, and before he could retaliate, the Lord surged forward and smashed him into the concrete. Laser beams lanced up from the impression the teen had made in the ground, but the Lord flickered to the side and the beams missed him—

Only to be caught off guard by a sonic blast to the face. The Lord's head didn't even budge, though. He glanced to his left and saw Cyborg standing with his sonic cannon aimed at him. "Ah, Mr. Stone," the Lord said. "One definition of insanity is to try the same thing over and over again and expect different results. Moreover, it's so dreadfully human, so impractical. Tell me why I'm supposed to be afraid of loud noises?"

The Lord extended his hand and it lanced out, his arm stretching and slamming into Cyborg's chest, driving a dent into the metal and sending the mechanical Titan airborne, where he smashed into a tree. The Lord smiled.

Until suddenly a lance burst from his chest, and the self-appointed god widened his dark eyes in surprise. Pain shot through his ribcage, and he twisted his head one-hundred eighty degrees on his neck to see his attacker behind him. It was a young woman he recognized, vaguely, as the successor to the mantle of the Shining Knight, her golden armor glowing faintly and her hands firmly grasped on the spear.

"Interesting," the Lord observed. "The Lance Longius—I'd believed it was lost after the Second World War. Supposedly the spear that pierced the side of Christ; and yet so ineffectual against me. I am not Christ, child, merely Lord."

Shining Knight wrenched the spear from the Lord's chest and took another thrust, this time towards his head. But the Lord slithered out of the way, his body distorting unnaturally, briefly losing its color and appearing as nothing more than a living shadow, and when it resumed its usual shape, The hole in his chest was gone and "You see, child, I have no heart to pierce, no lungs to rupture. I sacrificed the luxury of _breath_ when I realized mortality was an impediment to what I plan to accomplish."

His eyes flashed with a violet burst of energy and Shining Knight fell to her knees, her body suddenly drained of its vitality. "You should be proud—that spell would have killed a lesser mortal. And I will tender you some credit—that spear did hurt like hell."

A new voice shouted, "Genocidalblowhardsaywhat?"

"What!?" The Lord shouted, his head snapping that direction. A golden metal gauntlet slammed into his face, burning with energy. The Lord's head recoiled, but he quickly regained his senses and summoned his katana once again, slashing at his attacker. It was a young man with golden hair and a big stylized G on his white T-Shirt. His right arm was covered in the mystical Gauntlet, an ancient artifact from which the hero also took his namesake. The Lord slashed furiously at Gauntlet, but with every slash, the Gauntlet artifact threw up a golden shield that blocked the attacks from the blade.

One hundred feet away, a statue of Justice fell to pieces, carved up by the power of the Lord's attacks.

The dark villain stared at Gauntlet, annoyed yet unsurprised that the young man still lived. "Really, Candide, your irreverence has become stale. It's not fresh anymore, though really it never was. You're a worn out cliché."

Gauntlet shrugged. "Yeah, maybe. But I'd rather trade places with Robert Pattinson at the Teenage Girls and Middle Aged Women Convention than show you anything but irreverence. Speaking of which, if you ever get tired of dying horribly when exposed to sunlight, you might take up sparkling. It's all the rage nowadays."

For once the Lord's back eyes flashed red. "I. DO. NOT. _**SPARKLE!"**_

An explosion of dark energy blossomed from the Lord's body, devastating the courtyard and sending Gauntlet tumbling back towards an iron gate, where he slammed hard against the bars, not able to throw his shield up fast enough to save himself the pain.

"Totally worth it," he groaned.

**

* * *

**

Meanwhile, in a bubble of Green Lantern energy hovering high above Earth-372, Starfire and the abrasive Titan known as Savior willed their vessel onward. "I do not look forward to this task," Starfire said. "What if your plan fails and I am unable to continue?"

"It won't fail," Savior said sternly. His tall, spiky white hair was rigid due to the Green shell around them. "We've tested it. We've prepared. I know where your pain receptors are and how to intercept their signals. And this is going to hurt me a lot more than it's going to hurt you."

Savior referred to his metahuman talent, the Shimmer, which allowed him to interface with the nervous systems of other living beings. The plan worked on the assumption that Starfire using her solar-powered Starbolts full bore, even as the populace of Earth was in the grip of the Lord's spell. Their tests hadn't indicated a problem, but the Lord of the Night was a master of subtle cruelties. At any rate, Savior had attempted to simply block the pain altogether, but with his relative unfamiliarity with the workings of the Tamaranian brain, he had failed to find a way to pull that off. He could reroute the signal to his own brain, but doing anything more complicated risked injuring Starfire.

"It is just that I worry, Noel, about what the appearance of these other Earths portend."

"I'm curious myself, Star," Savior said, forgoing the usual scolding about use of his given name in the field. "But the Justice League is going to handle that. We've got to focus on our mission."

The blazing golden light of the sun came into view, beating down on the little green bubble. Savior could feel the spell working against him, even through the protection of the Green Lantern energy. He gritted his teeth and extended his Shimmer tendrils out of his hands and through the pores on the alien's scalp; then around her skull and into the soft gray matter. He had a tendency to go in through the ear when he dealt with criminals because he didn't really mind to puncture their eardrums; Robin might have a word or two with him if he did the same to Starfire.

"Ready," he said, when he had made the right connections.

Starfire nodded, and drifted out of the green bubble into the harsh vacuum of space. Immediately, a wave of anguish shot up the Shimmer strands and into Savior's own body, like scalding oil poured over his skin. He recoiled and had to force himself not to lose his connection. The urge to just rip the Shimmer back out like taking your hand off the eye of a hot stove—every instinct screamed for him to do so. After a few seconds, he had become accustomed enough to the pain to realize how hard he was grinding his teeth and that his eyes were wet, tears from the searing pain hovering as tiny spheres of water around him, and in those tears he imagined reflections—of a battle against the demon Trigon, of a time he'd been tortured and lobotomized by the Lord, of his numerous near-murders at the hands of a psychos and despots, and of his shame when he had been played for a fool by Slade and nearly turned into a murderer himself. Compared to those situations, this pain was just a necessary sacrifice.

He heard a thought, not his own, but Starfire's. _Despite all your flaws, know that your are appreciated, my friend._

And then a brilliant green-white beam of energy blasted out of Starfire's hands and arced down towards Earth.

**

* * *

**

Donna Troy and Amethyst both charged at the Lord, Donna attacking high and Amethyst with her bishojou battle-ax attacking low. The Lord dodged the axe and took Donna's punch square in the jaw, and didn't block the second. The third, however, he caught with the shadowy claw that had replaced his missing arm upon completion of the dark ritual that gave him his powers.

"An interesting specimen," The Lord said, his eyes casting their dark gaze on Donna's star field shirt. "One whose past is cast into chaos by the turbulence of reality, a true walker of the Time Stream. You could have so much usefulness."

"Shove it, Lord," Donna spat. "I may not know where I came from, but I know who I am!"

The Amazon grabbed the Lord's crown of horns and lifted him off the ground, flinging him across the street where Amethyst swung her ax again and cleaved into the Lord's shoulder. The shadow arm fell to the ground and the Lord crashed into a statue of James Madison, breaking it in half.

He stood up and raised his other arm. The shadow of the statue he'd broken simply _left _its place below the monument and congealed again on his shoulder, forming a new arm.

"On second thought, both of you aren't thinking very strategically, considering that you persistently attempt to defeat a living shadow with blunt trauma—and because of their meager enchantments, blades that give me little more than glorified papercuts."

"We're just stalling, to be honest," Donna said.

"Stalling for what, pray tell?" The Lord smirked. "The fact that Starfire is currently blasting at me with a beam of solar energy that has a ridiculously small chance of hitting me and an even smaller chance of doing significant damage if it does? Yes, I pay attention to the battle field. I simply choose to ignore the factors of no consequence."

"**Pay attention to this!"** hissed the voice of Raven. The black raven-spirit that represented her soul appeared, magic runes glowing before her hands.

The Lord arched an eyebrow, but before he could translate the runes, a blast of blue light hit him in the chest, and a diamond-shaped barrier appeared around him. He shook his head.

"Weak, Raven. I'd expect better from you lineage. This spell will be unraveled in no more than fifteen sec... oh... oh dear." He suddenly had a bad idea of what was coming.

"That's correct," Raven said, her eyes showing a smile that didn't show on her lips. "We only need eight." She raised her arms and her cloak billowed, a jet-black darkness beneath... and out from the darkness flew a new figure, her body seemingly made of glass, her eyes and lips smiling confidently.

"Is that Prysm?" Donna watched as the transparent Titan rose into the air. "Not seen here since that trouble with Technis."

"She owed Nightwing a favor, and he called it in," Raven explained.

And then Prysm flew towards the green light in the sky, the beam slamming into her. She turned and extended a hand towards the diamond that contained the Lord, then blasted the light back out, pure golden sunlight in concentrated beam form. It hit the diamond, breaching it and piercing the Lord of the Night; but when it finished its path and hit the far end of the diamond, it reflected off, diffusing as it was reflected. The diamond became an echo-chamber of luminescence, and the Lord let out a fierce cry as his body was disintegrated.

"Ahahaha!" cackled the Lord. "Another battle won, Titans! BUT THE WAR NEVER ENDS!"

"That's one problem down," Donna said, raising her eyes to the dozens of parallel Earths visible in the sky. "And... several... to go."

**

* * *

**

_Earth-321_

_Babylon_

Kal-El's trajectory had taken him around the world twice before he approached his enemy, building up his speed to levels worthy of the name Superman. Then he aimed himself directly at the desert around Babylon, where the armed forces of the United States and Iraq were blasting at Parademons and shelling the behemoth new body of Darkseid—Abaddon. The artillery assault exploded against the evil god's armor and skin, but did no apparent damage.

Superman dipped down, the slipstream of his motion spraying sand and rock to the side as he neared the ground; then he flew back up, slamming into Abaddon at an upward angle that lifted the New God airborne. He flew across the desert, seeming to hang in the air, time suspended, before arcing back down to the Earth. He slammed into the ground and sent a billowing cloud of dust and sand out from the impact site. Superman hovered closer to the cloud and saw Abaddon rise from within.

The Man of Steel blinked.

And he was suddenly eye to eye with his enemy. Superman goggled from the fright and he flew backwards reflexively, his every instinct commanding him to put distance between himself and Abaddon. But Abaddon's arm moved with unnatural speed and grabbed Superman from the air, the evil god's fist closing around him with a crushing grip and drawing Superman closer to his face.

"Kal-El, you have survived." Abaddon smiled, his teeth yellow and covered in grime. "This does not surprise me as much as I might have thought. I suppose I have become used to your knack for miracles."

"And we've got you to blame for all that's happened to Earth." Superman's eyes narrowed and twin red beams of energy lanced and bore into Abaddon's granite-hued face. Smoke rose, but the New God did not react; Superman could see no flicker of movement even in the god's supersized face.

"A mere annoyance," Abaddon said. "I have descended into the depths of hell and called down power from the highest heavens. The world you knew is dying, and hundreds more will die before the day is through. All life in this solar system will be extinguished, and my armies will prepare to rage against the celestial map. Star by star will fall to the might and will of this new Empire. The Reich of Apokalips will cover the universe for all eternity, and in death, in the pitiful form of existence you would refer to as 'afterlife', you will observe all this and despair that nothing can be done. Though ascend you might to the highest paradise, it will seem as hell for all its futility."

"You've thrown outrageous boasts my way before," Superman said. "But you've yet to back up a single one of them."

Abaddon looked up at the alternate Earths in the sky above.

"A demonstration is in order." The eyes flashed and Omega Beams lanced out, faster than Superman had ever seen them move, traveling to the nearest parallel world in nanoseconds.

Superman saw their target with his telescopic vision and his heart sank.

"A parallel version of you, Kal-El," said Abaddon. "Turned to ash in an instant."

His eyes flashed again.

"And another."

Again.

"And another."

Three more times the New God cast his terrible attack towards the sky and three more parallel Men of Steel breathed their last. Superman watched in horror, his muscles losing tension, his body refusing to struggle against the oppressive grip of Abaddon's fist.

The god opened his hand and Superman's power of flight failed him. He fell to the ground, hands and knees warm against the desert sand.

"You see, Kal-El, it his hopeless," Abaddon loomed over him, looking down with contempt in his eyes. "The beams that caused you torturous pain are now instantly lethal, and the arrogance and cruelty that stayed my hand against you before has been burnt away by the chaos of death; in it's place there is only a callous pragmatism. And that pragmatism demands your death. For there to be any chance of your survival, you would need another miracle. And with Lex Luthor dead, I do not see such a miracle forthcoming. Not this time, Kal-El. Not this time."

The Omega Beams lanced out once again, striking Superman dead in the chest; pain wracked his body, and then... nothing.

No... not nothing... just... a slight warmth.

Superman looked up to see a white... energy, a white.. fire. A White Light. Dancing all over him. And the light hummed with music—the same as the symphonic melody that emanated from behind the golden wall at the edge of space, like a celestial hum alive with all the soul of the universe.

Abaddon stood with a look of shock on his face, and Superman began to realize—he'd got his miracle.

_There, _hummed the voice of Lex Luthor in Superman's head. _You've absorbed the White Light of Creation, the fire that gave birth to the universe. Use it to destroy Darkseid._

"But how...?" Superman asked. "How was I able to do that?"

_Easy_, Luthor said, his voice a combination of contempt and detached amusement.

_You're __**Superman.**_

**

* * *

**

The Boom Tube closed with a pop and the two figures that had entered through it stepped forward and looked around. One was familiar, clad in blue armor, eyes glowing yellow. The other was in a prisoner's jumpsuit, a shock of red hair growing from the top of his head.

"Are you sure about this, Beetle?" the Oracle asked, leading the duo over to a platform. A golden microphone hanged from the ceiling.

"This place is incredible," Beetle said, looking around in amazement. "Scarab says it's practically alive with technology from... 'New Genesis?'... wherever that is."

"You didn't answer my question," Barbara said.

"Right, sorry." Beetle looked at the prisoner for a long moment. "No, to be honest, I'm not. I don't trust him, but I don't have any other ideas."

"Very well." Oracle pressed a button and a force field formed around the platform on which the Music Meister stood. "I'm disabling the vocal inhibitor in your throat. That force field is to protect me and Beetle from your powers. If you try anything, I can give you a jolt that will disable all your motor functions. Permanently."

"Und...understood, ma'am," said Music Meister with a gulp. He stepped up to the microphone and looked over at Oracle. "What do I sing?"

"I have no idea! They're your powers."

"Okay then." He took a deep breath, and then began belting.

_Here me now oh multiverse full of strife_

_All your troubles will end pretty fast!_

_Sing along with my song if you value your life_

_or this day will sure be your laaaast!_

The Watchtower began broadcasting the signal across the field of parallel Earths in the skies above Earth-321, and Oracle silently prayed that this plan would work.

**

* * *

**

"_In order to obtain the impossible, one must attempt the absurd."_

_-Miguel de Unamuno_


	12. The High Cost of Living

**Deus Ex Machina**

**Chapter Twelve  
**

**The High Cost of Living**

**

* * *

**

The Man of Steel narrowed his eyes. "No more, Darkseid!"

Kal-El pistoned back his fist, then punched into the granite-hued face of his enemy, and Abaddon staggered back; he repeated the attack: left, right, left. Each time, a resounding KRAK sounded through the Iraqi desert. Superman tried to punch a fifth time, but Abaddon finally moved, dodging below the attack and swinging his gargantuan fist upwards, smashing Superman from below. Kal-El was sent careening skyward, tumbling end-over-end. He took comfort in the fact that he'd have a moment to recover, at least...

Or not. Abaddon crouched slightly and then leapt into the air, lifting off with impossible power and sending a shockwave rolling through the desert floor below. Superman flew left and the charge missed, but he was caught in Abaddon's slipstream and dragged farther and farther up into the atmosphere. He recovered in time to catch a punch; Superman's muscles ached in protest, but he slowed the impact of Abaddon's massive hand. He countered by pulling himself forward, using his momentum to shoulder-ram the New God in his smug face. The momentum carried Abaddon out of the atmosphere, and Superman took a deep breath, then followed, dodging a barrage of Omega Beams.

Most of a barrage, at least. The last one fired caught him in the chest and sent a fresh wave of pain through his body; the air was forced out of Superman's lungs. What it did not do was stop Superman's momentum. He crashed into Abaddon with a hay-maker—even though the New God raised his massive arms to block it, but the force sent him careening towards Earth.

No, Superman realized. It wasn't _his_ Earth, but one of the parallel planets in the sky. Abaddon found himself in the gravity well and Superman closed the distance, the two trading blows in the sky until Superman was blindsided by a kick that sent him in a downward trajectory. He smashed through a sky scraper and then slammed into the outside of a massive complex.

The sign on the building read _Celestial Laboratories_; the logo resembled that of Star Labs, with more room for the extra letters.

More Omega Beams rained down, sending rock and metal spraying into the air and driving Superman into the laboratory complex, where rooms full of delicate equipment met its end from Superman violently slamming into it.

Then two massive legs crashed through the ceiling... and came to a stop in front of the Man of Steel.

Superman heard energy blasts outside, and flew up in time to see... presidents.

Washington and Lincoln, riding on glowing winged horses, were attacking Abaddon with weapons that shone with a Golden Light, while Teddy Roosevelt and John F. Kennedy stood on the roof of Celestial Laboratories and blasted at his knees with enormous shoulder-mounted cannons. Abaddon snarled and kicked Roosevelt, the president lifting off the ground and tumbling across the roof along with chunks of the building that Abaddon's foot had displaced. Roosevelt's body broke into pieces as he rolled. Superman's eyes widened for a moment, and then he saw that Roosevelt was an android.

He flew over and examined him, looking over his shoulder to keep an eye on Abaddon. A scan of Roosevelt with his X-Ray vision immediately showed him that the robot was well beyond his ability to fix.

"I'm sorry," he said. "This wasn't your fight."

Suddenly, a voice emanated from Roosevelt's head. "Horse feathers! When my world is threatened I fight, even if it means a royal thrashing. Do give that over sized oaf a one-two for me, would you?"

Taken aback for only a second, Superman smiled and nodded, then turned, blasting off towards Abaddon and slamming into the evil god's breastplate, the metal painfully hot to the touch. Nonetheless, he lifted Abaddon off the ground and then hurled him skyward. Abaddon stared at him silently, and blasted another Omega Beam, which slammed into Superman's chest and blasted him back. Pain wracked Superman's body, but he tried to shrug it off.

_Every time the Omega Beam hits you,_ Luthor's voice said, _some more of the White Light is used up. Press the attack now while you have the advantage._

Superman grimaced, and flew forward. He had to hope Luthor knew what he was talking about.

**

* * *

**

All across the parallel Earths, the telepathic signal seeped into the minds of people; the song of the Music Meister began radiating in their brains, and his powers compelled them to sing along. Millions of people in New York City stopped their cars and left their business to stride out into the street and sing.

_He's the Muuuuusic Meister!  
And his song shall save the Earth!_

_We all agree, to sing along!_

_And prove our master's worth!_

_He's the Muuuusic Meister!  
He sings the song that the world wants to hear!_

_Just this once, we gladly obey_

_Our hypnotic puppeteer!_

The music echoed through the streets and through the ground below, altering the vibrational frequencies of the parallel Earths. Slowly, every one of them was moving closer to Frequency 321.

Barbara Gordon sat upon the Watchtower biting into her lower lip as she monitored the disparate branches of the Multiverse, hoping that Music Meister's song took effect before the instability accelerated and destroyed them all.

**

* * *

**

Death slammed into a moon of Old Tamaran, dodging as the Black Racer rained down arrows of destruction on her. The impacts kicked up clouds of moondust that provided cover, and Death ran across the icy surface, up a mountain and back into the vacuum of space. Black Racer was waiting, swooping down and slicing at her with his blade, even as Death dodged, lunging towards the dead planet below. Tamaran was a world that had died twice: once a lush, tropical jungle, Gordanian raids had reduced it to a harsh white desert. Worse still was the attack by a crazed Supervillain the previous year, slamming a radioactive meteor into the surface and destroying what life the planet had left. Surviving Tamaranians had settled anew, but their place in the galaxy was still precarious.

Death shed silent tears as she walked the irradiated wastes of a planet she had loved dearly. There was power, though, for her. A bitter, melancholic power on Tamaran, the twice-dead world. Usually, the death of a mortal was a chance to meet, to speak, to be with the people she cared for so much. It was what Death, ironically, lived for. But such impersonal death, such slaughter on a massive scale, and all the regrets and fears that came with it—that was the cost of her position, that bitterness. But still, there was energy in it too. It flowed into her, and Death closed her eyes. She felt wind flow around her.

Even through the vacuum of space, Black Racer heard the sound of her wings.

And then she was there; Death slammed into him with the force of a hundred-thousand meteors and sent the Black Racer careening through the cosmos, plowing through stars and extinguishing them in a flash. It wasn't fair that it had to come to this, but there were some things over which even the Endless had no control.

**

* * *

**

Overman was about to declare victory against the Parademons when a sonic boom tore through the sky, and every head in Berlin turned skyward to see the dark god falling from the clouds, his armor glowing red from entry into the atmosphere. The evil god's eyes burned with orange light, light that lanced out in beams and ziz-zagged towards his pursuer.

To Overman's shock, the pursuer was Kryptonian like himself—a parallel version of Kal-El, chasing the giant god across the sky. Overman flew towards them, even as the wound in his side ached and reached out to drag him further along the path of life, closer and closer to his grave. Overman greeted the alternate version of himself.

"Guten tag!"

Superman looked away from his enemy for a moment, taking in the look of the alternate version of himself, and then pursing Abaddon towards impact site. "It's not a good day," Superman said.

Overman flew beside him, matching the pace of his descent. "You speak English, then. It is a good day for me, for I have saved Berlin from disaster and perhaps may finally rest in peace."

Abaddon slammed into the ground, a shockwave emanating out from the impact sight. Buildings across Berlin rumbled on their foundations, some of them collapsing in on themselves. Overman and Superman both winced to hear the cries of the civilians as they fled from the carnage below, even as many more continued to sing the Music Meister's song.

"I don't know what to say to someone who wishes to die," Superman said. "But if you're willing to help me, then I welcome it. I'm Superman, and that creature is called Darkseid, a self-styled alien god from the planet Apokalips. He wants to destroy every possible incarnation of planet Earth and then subjugate the universe." The blue-clad hero's words were full of bitterness.

"I take it you have some history with him," Overman said.

Superman didn't answer. Instead he looked down at the hole through Overman's abdomen. "You're wounded."

"So I am. But my wounds are no concern of yours. I wish to help you destroy this Darkseid. Perhaps then my atonement will be complete."

Before Superman had a chance to ask Overman what he needed to atone for, Abaddon was up again, tossing buildings and handfuls of cars skyward at the two heroes. Overman and Superman weaved in and out of them, dodging the makeshift projectiles. One truck was about to slam into Overman. Unfortunately, Overman's wound made fast movements painful, so Superman blasted red beams from his eyes and exploded the truck. Superman and Overman flew through the fireball and simultaneously slammed into Abaddon's face, their fists driving divots into the evil god's flesh. Abaddon smashed at them with his fist, batting Superman away into a billboard, and then clobbering Overman into the asphalt of the street below. Overman pulled himself from the crater his body made and grabbed a nearby unoccupied Volkswagen, then hurled it at Abaddon; but the New God batted it back at him—much faster, at that—and the car slammed into Overman, nearly knocking him out of his boots.

Superman shouted, a nonverbal expression of his anger at Darkseid, and blasted down, kicking and punching. Abaddon attacked too, and blows were exchanged, blocking and returning fire; every punch sending a window-shattering shockwave echoing through the city. Superman's world became a flurry of punches and kicks, blocks and parries, and the hum of the White Light grew louder in his mind.

"Burn!" Superman growled, and unleashed a blast of heat vision. Except instead of the typical red streams of energy, fiery white beams lanced out, blasting Abaddon back, through another block of buildings and into the Olympic Stadium. Superman, burning with the White Light, arced forward and hammered into Abaddon again, repeatedly punching him, driving him back. Abaddon's armor cracked, and Superman grabbed pieces and started ripping them off before smashing into Abaddon's body underneath. The evil god smashed him across the stadium and into the bleachers; Superman retaliated with another blast of the White Light from his eyes. But Abaddon countered with the Omega Beam, and the two attacks slammed into each other and canceled each other out.

"You can't hold out forever, Kal-El," Abaddon said. "Your stamina is not infinite. The magic light inside your frail body will dim in time, but I am _eternal_."

Superman landed on the field of the stadium. "Nothing lasts forever, Darkseid."

He charged forward, pistoning his fist back to attack again, but Abaddon moved faster, smashing Superman to the ground and then stomping down on him, his massive granite boot grinding Superman into the dirt. Superman tried to move, but he felt the Earth compressed against him, his bones protesting the pressure with waves of pain.

"Kal-El, if you learn nothing else from this battle, know this—" And then he pressed all the harder into the ground.

"DARKSEID _IS_."

"That can be changed!" bellowed another voice, this one with a German accent. Overman blasted in from over the stadium walls, slamming into Abaddon and driving him backwards; huge craters appeared in the stadium where his feet fell.

Superman pulled himself out of the one he'd be stomped into and watched as Overman wailed on the evil New God; with his x-ray vision, he could see that every punch was so hard that the bones in Overman's wrists began to crack. Abaddon fell to his knees, then forward onto his face. Superman listened, and heard no breath, no heartbeat. Abaddon lay still.

Superman blinked. Could it be that simple?

Overman landed, and Superman walked over and stood beside him.

"Your wrists—" Superman began.

Overman interrupted him. "Are in incredible pain. But that is okay, the deed is done. What happens to me now is irrelevant."

"Why do you despise yourself so much?" Superman asked, putting a hand on Overman's shoulder, trying to comfort him. "Where does this anger come from?"

"I was forged by the government of a madman into a weapon for a supposed glorious and eternal Reich," Overman said. "Everything I am and represent is evil, and I've spent my whole life in rebellion against it. Yet the guilt remains. You're American, yes?"

Superman nodded.

"I envy you, then," Overman said, lowering his head. "Americans have a unique capacity for self delusion—the ability to convince themselves that they are the 'good guys' in all things. I was not gifted with such a luxury."

"If what I've seen you do today is characteristic, then you _are_ a good guy, whether you believe it or not. I don't pretend the country that adopted me is perfect." Superman gave a bitter laugh. "I've come into conflict with its government several times, in fact. But the same nation that produces great evil can also produce great good. In my world, the war Adolf Hitler began ended very differently thanks to America. That's not a boast, but the promise of what real patriotism is—to love your country and the good it's capable of even as you work to rid it of its flaws. And perhaps someday you can extend that to this entire planet."

Overman looked up and nodded, and Superman thought he saw a glimmer of hope that was not there before. "Perha—"

And then Overman lunged forward, grabbing Superman and whirling him around, even as a flash of bright light consumed the parallel Kryptonian. There was a snarl of anguish, and then a charred skeleton fell away to reveal the burning eyes of Abaddon, glaring up from the crater that Overman had driven the evil god into. The Omega Force that flared behind those eyes was so overcharged that Superman couldn't with stand it on his own. Only the waning force of the White Light inside him saved him from Overman's fate.

Superman's felt his heart—his heart that could withstand 100,000 volt shocks—skip a beat within his chest, and then the nausea that always came intertwined with grief twisting its way through his stomach. Then his head buzzed with anger.

"Darkseid!" Superman snarled. "Damn you!"

The Man of Steel arced forward, blasting right through a second Omega Beam, more of the White Fire vanquished within him as the beam struck. But Superman made it to Abaddon's form, even as the New God pushed against the ground and threw himself to his feet, blocking Superman's punch with his massive forearm. The statues and seats of the Olympic Stadium rumbled and cracked. A tiny fissure formed in the gauntlet at Abaddon's wrist.

"No," Abaddon whispered. "You are the only one damned here, Kal-El."

And then Abaddon's fist flickered, smashing Superman with an uppercut that sent the Man of Steel careening into the upper atmosphere and beyond, out into space where the dozens of parallel Earths resonated with the sound of music, a music that transcended the vacuum, rippling through the space-time continuum itself.

Abaddon joined him, the dark shadow of his presence like a note of discord tearing through the celestial symphony. Superman heard him coming and righted himself, blasting at him with the Light, but failing to slow him down. The enemies clashed, tearing through space in a flurry of punches and kicks that added a percussion to the song that was resonating from the Earths. The loud bass drum beat was trying to drown out the thump of the snare.

If anyone had been listening to the song, it might have sounded like the bass drum was winning.

**

* * *

**

Music Meister was sweating: he could hear the people all across the parallel Earths singing along with him, and moreover, he could feel their power, but beyond that, he wasn't sure if he was having in impact. And with the way the red-haired woman and Blue Beetle were staring at him, he was afraid his time to be effective was running out...

"Is it just me, or is it hot in here, Calliope?"

Music Meister blinked.

"It's just you, Erato."

To his left and right, there were suddenly nine beautiful women standing about, clad in togas and gathered around his microphone. He took a moment to realize that he had stopped singing to stare at them.

Erato arched an eyebrow. "What are you doing, fool? Sing!"

"Who... who are you?" Meister asked.

"We're just here to help you out," the shortest one said. "I'm Urania, by the way."

"Let's get this started," Erato said; immediately she began belting out the Music Meister's song into the mic, and the other eight women joined her. Music Meister himself began again as well, his mind suddenly filling with words and his voice reaching new heights. The women—they were like goddesses, inspiring him, giving him what he needed.

_I'm the Muuuuuuuuuusic Meister! _

_And the Earth's in my hands!  
Now sing along, and hit this note!_

_Or else the world will end!_

Okay, so it wasn't a perfect rhyme, but this was hardly the time to nitpick.

_Aaaaahhhhhhaaaaahhhhh!_

In his mind, Meister heard the people of the Multiverse reciprocate the note.

_Aaaahhhhhaaaahhhhhhhhhhhh!!_

And the chorus reached the right pitch...

**

* * *

**

Across the gathered parallel Earths, the Music of the Spheres rang out, billions of people on every planet pouring into the streets to sing, until the Earths themselves were vibrating at the frequency of the music. And as the chorus comprised of all humanity sang, the worlds began glowing, sliding ever closer together—not in the three dimensional realm, but in dimensions beyond that, syncing together in space-time harmony. Radiant music, glowing with the light of Creation began emanating from the planets, arcs of multi-hued energy sparking between worlds.

And suddenly every Earth was Earth-321.

Time and space cried out as hundreds of planets fused into a single sphere of glowing light, the celestial song resounding one last triumphant note as history warped and divergent paths came together. A burst of energy blasted out from the new planet, a wave of chronal energy that tore through the fabric of the galaxy.

At the core of the universe's eleven dimensions sat a new world:

Earth-321...

_Plus._

**

* * *

**

The wave of chronal energy radiated out from Earth and slammed into Superman first, and then into Abaddon, blasting the two away from the planet, with a cascade of divergent time lines flashing before Superman's eyes as the energy passed.

Abaddon snarled and charged at him, raising his fists to strike.

For once, Superman was faster, dodging around the attack and smashing into Abaddon's side, driving the dark god down towards the planet. Abaddon fell, pushed on by Superman, a star burning in the sky as he plummeted towards the Earth, inexorably drawn back to his birthplace, back to Babylon.

But this time, the surface of the Earth refused to support its impact, the entire city collapsing into a massive sink hole as Abaddon crashed, a plume of dust and rock arcing into the sky. Babylon fell down through the hole, piece by piece.

**

* * *

**

Oracle looked up from her position on the floor of the Watchtower and saw only dim light. She pulled herself to one knee and then to her good foot, limping over to the control panel of the Watchtower. "Elana, report," she said, her hand resting against the warm telepathic interface.

_Stabilizing Watchtower's orbit. Calculating alterations to the causal nexus. Temporal distortions are beginning to return to normal. Please hold._

"Please hold?" Babs asked, scratching her head. "She's never asked me to hold before."

"What happened?" Beetle asked, hovering over to the platform where Music Meister lay. The Scarab scanned him and informed Jaime that he was unconscious, apparently in some form of coma. Jaime winced; Music Meister sounded like a fairly dangerous guy, but he and Batman could be in trouble if they had done permanent damage to his brain—if that incarnation of Batman was even still alive now.

"Um, the computer said something about the parallel worlds fusing into one. Beetle, did you know that would happen?" Oracle turned and glared at him, and Jaime thought that she'd probably kick his butt even with her broken leg.

"Uh, Delirium said something about the worlds fusing together, yeah," Jaime said. "But that was better than them all blowing up, right? You know, including ours?"

Oracle's eyes shot wide with anger. "How is that any different than killing all the parallel people?"

"I.. don't know..." Beetle said. He could feel a horrible fear growing in his stomach.

Elana's voice buzzed in Oracle's mind. _Barbara Gordon, the time stream will preserve the potentialities expressed in these alternate Earths. They will be expressed, either within linear time, or in some fashion beyond the scope of such. Subject: Stephens, Albus, the Music Meister now has his own history and existence in this universe when previously he existed only on Earth-181._

Barbara glanced over at the unconscious form of the Music Meister. "I remember..." she thought aloud, thoughts and images suddenly flooding inside. "He and Vandal Savage tried to take over the world with Opera."

"The musical type?" Jaime asked.

"No, the web browser," Barbara snapped. "Of course the musical style. Vandal Savage was always a fan."

Jaime winced. "Sorry."

"No, it's my fault. I shouldn't have snapped, but I've never experienced anything like this before." Babs looked out the window towards the newly formed Earth. "There's a whole new world of possibilities out there. It's just sort of hard to wrap my mind around."

_Incoming transition, Barbara Gordon._

Babs patched it through, and the image of John Stewart appeared on the screen, blood trickling from a cut on his forehead.

"What the Jonas Brothers was that?" Stewart asked, rubbing his head.

"A massive middle finger to the laws of causality," Oracle said. "What's your status? My computer is busy trying to recalibrate to the new timeline and I'm not getting reports from the rest of the strike teams."

"We're doing fine," Stewart said. "Sinestro fled, but we've captured or killed the majority of his corps. The Lanterns are just mopping up."

Another window opened beside that of the Green Lantern, this one showing the goddess Athena, the newly elected leader of the combined deities of antiquity.

"News from the battlefield," the new ruler said. "Zephyrus and Njord have largely cleared the Anti-Life from Earth's atmosphere, and the Parademons are all but routed."

She paused for a moment. "There was also a major impact in Iraq. The archeological site at Babylon has collapsed into the Earth, and we believe that Superman and Darkseid are fighting deep within the planet."

"Skartaris?" John Stewart asked.

Athena nodded. "But I fear we may need to intervene. Oracle, if you are unable to coordinate the resistance any longer, we may need to reverse engineer some of Darkseid's own technology if we wish to secure a final victory."

"What did you have in mind?"

Athena stepped back and motioned, and a new face, one Oracle recognized as Hephaestus, stepped into view and began speaking.

"Just outside Babylon there's what appears to be a black hole with the event horizon forcibly wedged open by dark magic, and it's been the source of all the Parademons. If my estimations are correct, then Darkseid was using a Doomsday Machine to draw on the power of the Bleed, the stuff between worlds, to forge his Parademon army. If we could take a crack at that..."

Oracle nodded. "I'll work on giving you all the help I can get, as soon as more of the Mother Box's processing power becomes available."

"We'll help out the gods," Green Lantern said. "By the way, whatever it is you guys did, good job, the instability that was tearing the Earths apart is gone. At least, our rings can't detect it anymore."

Oracle glanced over at Beetle, and the young hero nodded. "Let's just hope we all make it out of this, and then we can do the congratulating."

With that, Beetle ran towards the airlock. There was still a lot of work to be done on Earth.

**

* * *

**

The Black Racer's gauntlet slammed into Death's face and staggered her, and before she could recover the Racer grabbed her by the arms and shoved forward; the two of them plummeted towards a star, and the Black Racer shoved Death into it, head first into the fusion reaction. Death grimaced in pain and reached out with her legs, wrapping them around Black Racer's torso and pushing him face first into the sun as well. She wrenched her head free from the star, shaking her head wildly to put out the burning coronal matter on her hair. If it were possible to smell in space, she would have crinkled her nose at the stench of her crisped hair.

Death grabbed a nearby artificial moon and pressed it flat and smooth with her palms, using its reflective surface as a mirror. A good chunk of her hair was gone, and what remained gave her a sporty tomboyish look.

"Huh, not really my style, but it could be worse," she thought aloud.

Then she glanced over to see that Black Racer had pulled his head out of the star; he was staring at her from behind a helmet that was still glowing red hot.

Death dodged his charge and whirled the moon at him, but the New God spun around and deflected it with his sword, sending it careening into the star. He charged again, slashing with his blade and forcing Death to dodge at full speed, the sword nicking her several times as he attacked. The Black Racer lunged again, this time thrusting with the sword directly toward Death's heart. She turned to the side, the blade's side brushing against her abdomen. And then she grabbed Black Racer and hurled him the direction of the lunge, using his momentum to send him careening towards the edge of the universe.

There, the Source Wall stood, the fissure in its surface spewing energy into space. Death drove forward pushing Black Racer up against that fissure. He struggled, attempting to push her away, and Death struggled to keep him pinned.

But slowly, the ancient curse on the wall took effect, the wall drawing the behemoth New God and fastening him there, locking him against the Source Wall for all time. Death drifted away, and the Black Racer reached out, his eyes shining, pleading for help. Death closed her eyes and looked away.

"I'm sorry, little god," she said. "Sorry that it had to be this way. But all things must come to an end eventually."

Death reached out and took the sword from Black Racer's hand, and the metal shifted, forming into her icon, the Ankh, which Death fastened to the chain on her neck.

**

* * *

**

_Earth-321 _

_Now_

Superman's fist ached, and shockwaves of pain rolled through his arm as he made contact with Abaddon, the punch blasting the evil god backwards. Abaddon righted himself and kicked Superman back, and the Man of Steel blasted through a falling chunk of an ancient Babylonian palace, even as the rest of the city rained down around them, the foundations of temples mingling with the housing of archeologists, and blood from his own wounds mingling with the pebbles and dust in the air.

He saw his enemy blast through the Ishtar gate, leaping up through the brilliant core of Skartaris and slamming into Superman. Kal-El tried to block, but Abaddon overpowered him, sending him careening across the world inside Earth. Abaddon appeared in the air, right in Superman's trajectory, and slammed Kal-El back down to the ground, just as a massive modern highway crashed down on top of him, shattering as it impacted in the rain-soaked Skartarian plain.

The smell of blood and damp asphalt filled Clark's nostrils as he dug himself out of the rubble. He wiped blood from his forehead and eyes with his hands, and then wiped the blood from his hands onto the blue legs of his costume.

A powerful wind lapped at his back and his cape blew away, rolling in the current like a tumbleweed.

He climbed up out of the crater, only to have a massive foot slam into his head, kicking him back down into it. A wave of pain shot through his body, but he barely noticed it over the pain of all his other wounds. He looked up to see Abaddon towering over him, the Omega symbol burning in his chest,

"You have lost, Kal-El," his enemy whispered with grim satisfaction. "There will be no deus ex machina to save you this time."

For once, Kal-El could not find the words to argue. For once, Superman's only response no response at all.

The victory of evil over good was irrefutable. Superman's will would never break, never bend, but the Man of Steel's body was too damaged to go on.

Superman was defeated.

He lay there, wishing for a chance to rest, yet knowing that Abaddon would not cease until his life was extinguished.

Abaddon's eyes flared, and Omega Beams lanced out, boring into Superman's back and sending more spasms of pain through is body. With every breath, Superman could feel the power of the White Light ebbing from his body, and the torturous energies of the Omega Beams only got more intense.

"Just think, Kal-El," Abaddon said. "If you had joined me when I first made the offer all those years ago. Think of the order we could have brought to this lawless galaxy. Think of the power and the luxury you could have—a new Kryptonian son, ruling at my side forever, worshiped as the child—"

Superman looked up, his face a mask of disgust.

Abaddon was grinning. "—of the ONE._ TRUE. __**GOD**_**.**"

The Man of Steel pulled himself to his feet and stared into Abaddon's burning red eyes, willing them to project defiance. "I'd rather burn," Superman growled.

"So be it."

Another burst of Omega Beams lashed out, blasting Superman flat on his back and sending another wave of pain through the Kryptonian's body.

"Now, at the end, as the darkness consumes you, you'll finally see how futile your life has been."

Superman heard two small footfalls, and then a voice.

"Mind if he gets a second opinion on that?"

Superman looked up to see Abaddon, still looking down at him, not turning to regard the newcomer.

"Ah, Wonder Woman," Abaddon said. "Arrived to aid the valiant knight? I'm afraid at this point you're far too late. One soul can't make a difference."

"Look behind you," came the low growl of Batman.

Immediately Abaddon's eyes widened, and he whirled around.

"Impossible!"

Superman mustered the strength to pull himself out of the crater, and looked beyond its rim. Gathered across the plain of Skartaris stood hundreds—thousands of figures: the gods of Olympus; the Justice League; old heroes long retired and new heroes that Superman had never seen before. Superboy and Supergirl hovered directly behind Batman and Wonder Woman, while across the plain, Superman saw the Liberty League of America, mounted on their winged horses, and a platoon of Green Lanterns hovering above the field. There were even what appeared to be angels, wings flapping, a radiant glow around them, and Superman recognized their leader, a member of the Eagle Host named Zauriel.

"It's not impossible, Darkseid," Wonder Woman said. "You built the device that made it happen—the Green Lanterns and the Olympians reworked your Doomsday Machine into a Miracle Machine capable of one function—grabbing every available hero and bringing them to the aid of Superman."

Abaddon reached deep within himself, drawing on energies long forgotten, and hurled a burst of Omega Energy out into the crowd of heroes, tearing through Johnny Thunder and striking the god Odin in the chest. Both collapsed, instantly dead.

"What madness could drive you all to defy me!"Abaddon barked. "I have destroyed Superman, I subjugated the Old Gods and slaughtered the New Gods. I _am_ the only god left worthy of worship. To defy me is to choose death."

A shadow fell over the gathering, one that even the light of the gods was hard pressed to fight back, and from the mists a new figure appeared. She was dressed in a tank top and black jeans, with skin as white as pearl and an Ankh around her neck. There was a soft smile on her face.

"You don't understand, Uxas. You never did."

"Death," intoned Abaddon's graveled voice. "You dare call me by that ancient name?"

"It is your name, no matter how many times you try to change it, no matter how many boastful titles you take. Just as mine is Death, regardless of all the appellations I'm given. You've committed a great sin, Uxas, for in your quest for power you have murdered my prodigal brother and billions of innocent mortals. And despite all the wisdom you've gained, you still have no comprehension."

"Enlighten me then," Abaddon said. "What madness drives those who defy me?"

Death smiled. "It's not madness, Uxas. Don't you get it? That's what is so wonderful about these people. They were inspired by a man from the stars, and in turn, they fought back against impossible odds. They've inspired the _gods themselves_ to fight on their side—to repent of the old pettiness and become new creatures. Is your heart so far gone that you can't see how incredible this is? That mortals are, for all their weaknesses, far greater in their potential than you or I can ever be?"

Superman could not see Darkseid's face, but he could see the evil god tense up, his muscles becoming stiff, his body straightening with rage.

"...I AM THE NEW GOD! I AM THE TIGER FORCE OF THE UNIVERSE. TO DEFY ME IS TO WELCOME DEATH! I AM.... I AM..."

He blasted with Omega Beams again, and the elder Hourman grabbed his son Rick, throwing him to the ground. The Omega Beams struck and Rex Tyler was dead. Tears welled up in Rick Tyler's eyes, but the new Hourman continued staring at Abaddon, his gaze full of condemnation. Just like all the other gazes that stared up at him.

And then Abaddon fell to his knees. "I am... I am..."

Death put a hand on his shoulder.

"I am nothing," Abaddon growled. "Nothing, if I can be bested by these simpering little humans and the gods of their ancient superstition. This universe must be the mad dream of a lunatic or a fool."

"Perhaps. But perhaps that is truly for us to decide for ourselves. It doesn't have to be." Death extended her hand, and a massive black scythe appeared in it, the Endless hovering off the ground. "But then I guess you made your decision long ago."

Death closed her eyes and swung the scythe down.

**

* * *

**

_Earth-321_

_One Month Later_

Young Justice had been assigned clean up and repair in New York City, and it had been a heart-wrenching job. Even with the clean up the Sinestro Corps had already managed during their occupation, Superboy and Wonder Girl were still pouring through ruined buildings, still finding unburied dead. In what was universally accepted as a supernatural occurrence, it seemed as though the bacteria themselves had made a temporary truce with the human race, since none of the bodies had decomposed to the point where identification was impossible. It was a small miracle in a sea of small miracles and cruel tragedies.

During a short break, Young Justice gathered by a truck supplying food and water to the workers; Superboy and Wonder Girl leaned against the tires while Miss Martian and Secret were experimenting with the effects of intangibility on food.

Amy sat down beside them, putting aside her blasting rod for a moment to eat a hoagie. "You know, I've been thinking," she said. "There was a hero who died, Big Barda. I think that's what I'm going to call myself now. Barda, that is, not Big Barda. I might grow into the full name someday, but for now, I just want to honor her memory."

"It's good of you to honor her memory like that," Wonder Girl said. "But you do know that Barda was her actual name, right? Not a superhero alias."

"I know, but it still sounds more threatening and heroic than 'Amy Sullivan'."

Wonder Girl laughed.

"As many people as died, I'm kind of surprised so few heroes died," Superboy said. "Not that there weren't losses."

**

* * *

**

_Central City_

Jay Garrick stood behind the pulpit, though he wasn't much of a preacher. He'd never been overly religious, either, but he believed in giving the dead the respect they deserved, and that's why he had agreed to give a eulogy at Johnny Thunder's funeral.

"The key to Johnny's success was always imagination," Jay said. "Never forget that. It's the key to your success at any endeavor, really. But when you have a magic genie like Johnny did... well, then imagination is your only limitation. The fact that it took the god of evil to do him in... well, really, what more needs to be said?"

At the rear of the audience, disguised in a long duster, the Thunderbolt—the genie that gave Johnny Thunder his powers—silently drifted up and away from the funeral. Jay Garick meant well, but the fact of the matter was, Johnny wasn't that smart. Thunderbolt knew he did most of the work, even though Johnny's heart had been in the right place. It wasn't wise to speak ill of the dead, though.

And despite it all, he'd miss Johnny. He'd miss him a lot.

Thunderbolt wondered through the streets of Central City, barely paying attention to where he was going, until he ran into a young black boy. He looked up and said "excuse me", but the boy glared at him.

"Watch where you going, foo," the boy spat, adding in a few expletives for good measure. "Damn crazy genies thinking they own the street."

Thunderbolt had the strangest feeling.... of destiny.

**

* * *

**

_Melbourne _

It was fairly well hidden as far as secret labs went, but finding it wasn't too hard. Getting in was easy too—just suck all the air out of the base until everyone passes out, then waltz in and conduct your mission. It wasn't hard. The figure, dressed head-to-toe in black, slowly hovered down the hall and into a lab at the far end. The door was marked SUBJECT 87: LUTHOR

The door was blasted away with just a punch.

The figured hovered up to a tank at the far end, where a man floating in a cloning solution, naked and hairless, breathing through a tube. A flicker of radiation emanated from the figure's eyes, stimulating a nerve in the clone's eyelids and causing them to open.

The figure took off his mask and looked directly into the eyes of the clone—and a soul flowed out, all the thoughts and ideas that made up Lex Luthor emanating from one mind to another—all the way to a certain point.

And then Superman tore his head away, forcing his eyes shut before the transfer was complete.

The clone spasmed, forcibly made aware of its surroundings where it had not been before.

"What the devil!?" it asked, its voice distorted by the breathing mask. "Where am I? Superman, what are you doing here?"

"Paying back a favor, Lex," Superman said evenly. "You scratched my back, so I'm scratching yours. Keeping a cloned body of yourself in a test tube. Interesting. I knew you were paranoid, but this, this is impressive."

"My memories end," Luthor said... "They end with Flash rushing around the world and punching me repeatedly. You're withholding something from me! There must be more."

"I am, Luthor," Superman said evenly. "Because its something I don't fully understand myself. And I sure as hell aren't giving you access to that information. The scientists in this facility will wake up soon enough. Tell them you're awake when they do."

With that, Superman pulled his mask back on, and flew out.

**

* * *

**

_Gotham City_

Bruce felt the weight on the opposite side of the bed lessen, and rolled over to see the silhouetted figure of the Amazon pulling on a robe as she hovered a foot off the ground. Bruce could see in her body language that she was tense, frustrated, and in deep thought.

"Diana," Bruce said, sitting up. "I'm sorry."

"Are you, Bruce?" she glanced back at him. "You always just shrugged and took all the insanity we deal with at face value. But deep down, you have the heart of a skeptic. Everything has to be analyzed, stripped down and made explicable to the terms the world of men understands. The fact that the gods are shams—doesn't that gratify you on some level?"

Bruce sighed finding his shorts among the bedsheets and pulling them on before he walked over to where Diana hovered. "Believe it or not, I can sympathize," he said. "For years I had unshakable faith in science. When Zatanna revealed to me that she knew how to do real magic, I didn't believe her. I thought she was lying. Or crazy. When she showed me the real thing, my world was rocked, and I realized that my teacher, Giovanni, Zatanna's father, had lied to me when he told me that all magic had a rational explanation."

"It's not the same thing, Bruce."

Bruce nodded. "Not entirely, no. I guess what I'm getting at is... just because it turns out the gods may not be worthy of your worship... doesn't mean they're not worthy of your respect."

* * *

_Logan, Utah_

At first reports of Sinestro Corps members holding up on Earth were dismissed as just paranoia, but eventually they had become substantial enough that members of the League were sent to investigate. Ray Palmer and Ryan Choi lead the team, thinking it a perfect opportunity to test out their new weapon, which looked rather like a 50 caliber machine gun with a solar panel attacked to the front.

Ryan motioned for Fire and Ice to head around the side of the ancient and supposedly-abandoned farmhouse and make sure they didn't sneak out any exits, while he and Palmer carried a pair of the weapons they'd developed from stealing a part of the Sinestro Corps' reality-machine.

Ryan crept up the steps of the old house, the boards creaking under his weight. A thud sounded within, and Ryan paused, standing stock still for a moment.

Until a blast of yellow energy tore through the door and slammed into Ray Palmer, blasting him backwards. Ryan raised his weapon and pointed it at the door, even as a Sinestro Corps member with violet skin and a ring of horns on his head burst through the door, slashing with yellow streams of energy. Ryan fell back on his butt, but raised the weapon.

The beams of yellow energy lanced out and hit the panel, whereupon dozens of LEDs along the surface of the weapon lit up; then Ryan pulled the trigger, blasting the yellow energy back at the Corps member in a concentrated beam, drilling a hole through his abdomen. The Sinestro Corps member collapsed, and Ryan looked over to Ray Palmer.

"Are you hurt?"

"Not bad," Palmer said, getting up. "He shouldn't have caught us off guard so badly."

"Yeah, perhaps we should get someone with X-Ray vision for the next raid."

"My thoughts exactly," Palmer said, picking up his weapon. "You'll make a fine atom yet, Professor Choi."

**

* * *

**

_Metropolis_

Exhaustion was an unusual feeling for Superman: it usually only came after a pitched battle. Today, it came after a 'battle' against the forces of gravity and the emotional turmoil of rebuilding Metropolis after yet another attack from Darkseid. It was simultaneously a familiar situation and uncharted territory—uncharted precisely because of the certainty that it would never happen again. Not due to Darkseid, at any rate. Superman had decided he needed a break. Even Kryptonians need a breather on occasion.

He sat atop the newly placed Globe atop the Daily Planet, looking out over the city—from the Suicide Slum to Centennial Park—and fell in love with the Big Apricot all over again, despite all its flaws.

"Have a moment to chat?"

Superman looked to his side, surprised to see Death sitting along side him, a bittersweet smile on her face.

"It's not often that I get to take a breather either," she said. "Something we have in common, I guess."

Superman stared at her for a moment, and then finally said something that he thought didn't sound completely inappropriate. "You want to talk to me? Wait, I'm not... this isn't... you haven't come for _me _ have you? I mean to... conduct your normal business affairs."

"No, nothing like that," she said. "Don't worry, you've still got some time left. No, I just thought you of all people needed some closure. Some perspective. There's a whole future riding on your shoulders, you know."

"Is that so?" Superman looked down at his feet. He thought a moment, and then spoke what was on his mind. "How do we go on from here? Millions have been killed. History has been altered. I have memories of so many different things, but they never actually happened in this time line. I can only imagine what this is doing to... well, normal people."

"You'll make it through."

"And then..." Superman looked at Death. "Apollo, the god Apollo, knelt in front of me. Was Darkseid right? Has the entire world gone mad?"

"I don't think so," Death said. "It's just that Apollo recognized something that you and he have something in common. You're both Myth."

"Myth?" Superman arched an eyebrow. "But I'm real. I exist."

Death smiled. "And so does Apollo. And on some level, so do Harry Potter and Son Goku and Jack Sparrow. You see, one thousand years from now, the Legion of Superheroes will protect the galaxy from all sorts of evildoers. And they'll look back and they'll remember you. But to them, you'll be a Legend. You'll be larger than life. The fact that you can be judgmental, and sometimes get overly angry, and fail to give people the benefit of the doubt—all that will be forgotten. What they'll remember is that you inspired an entire generation of heroes—and the gods themselves—to stand up to the ultimate evil. To fight. And to win. That, more than anything else, is what makes you Superman."

Superman sat and pondered her words. "So, where will you go now?"

"Me? Oh, here and there. My job never ceases. But tonight, I have somewhere special to be. I've got a birthday party to attend. I guess I'll get on the road. Farewell, Kal, until our paths cross again.

**

* * *

**

Mount Olympus stood uninhabited—forever consecrated by the gods as a monument to those that had fallen in the battle against Atheos and his minions. The gods found themselves a new home. In the distant corner of the universe, there was a dead planet covered in bones and gigantic fire-pits. The gods fixed it. New life bloomed in the formerly barren fields. The monuments to a dead, wicked god fell, replaced with a wondrous garden. The fire-pits were emptied of their fuel and filled with pure, clear water.

The planet Apokalips was rechristened Pantheon, home of the gods.

**

* * *

**

_Trivandrum, India_

When Death had reaped the soul of Uxas, her brother's powers and responsibilities had entered into her. The other five Endless, even the ever-covetous Desire, had agreed that there would be no warring between them. Destruction and Death had duties that were the most similar to each other, and it was only appropriate that they be carried out by the eldest sister.

"The time is now," Destiny said. The six gathered in a tiny hospital room as a young woman was handed her first born son, her mouth curling into a smile of pure joy. He was her son, and she named him Suranjan.

To Destiny, Death, Dream, Delirium, Desire, and Despair, he was their new baby brother.

They called him Delight.


End file.
